Step One: Love Quest
by C-Nuggets N.L
Summary: Sequel to Love Game. Percy and Annabeth finds Town Half-Blood, meeting other demigod friends. But Percy and his friends are soon put into action by a quest given by Aphrodite. This just spells: Uh-Oh. Story currently on Hiatus.
1. Chapter 1: Thalia Grace

**Disclaimer: My friend was reading chapter seven for An Extraordinary Cinderella Story, and kept saying, "YOU F-ING FAIL!" 'Cause I forgot to say, "HADES NO, I DO NOT OWN PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS!" for the rest of the chapters. AH HAHAHA :D**

**Warning: This Fan Fiction Contains Thalico (Nico x Thalia), Percabeth (Percy x Annabeth), Chirsse (Chis x Clarisse), Traite (Travis x Katie), Gruniper (Grover x Juniper), Jasper (Jason x Piper), and Beckena (Beckendorf x Silena). **

**Town Half-Blood - Chapter One**

Two teenagers were out camping in a green forest filled with beautiful colourful plants. The sun was glimmering in the cloudless blue sky. It was a lively forest, with birds singing and rabbits hoping. The teenagers, boy and girl were happily laughing and joking around. They wish.

Here's what _really _happened. They were in a dark forest filled of pine, camping in the middle of the woods. The moon was covered by some gray clouds and it looked like it was about to rain. There were fruits in the forest, yes, but there wasn't much. Some of the fruits and berries were poisonous. There were owls and rats scattering about. Crows were hovering above their heads. The two teenagers were _not _laughing and joking around. In fact, they were doing the exact opposite.

"I can't believe you ate the _last _marshmallow!" Annabeth growled.

"I was hungry!" Percy protested.

"Well what about me? Didn't you think that _I'd _be hungry, too?" she hissed.

Percy was about to open his mouth to speak, but Annabeth had cut him off. "I'm a _girl_. You're supposed to let the _girl _eat. You know what? I was right all along! Princes _were _selfish and greedy." Annabeth turned away from him, crossing her arms against her chest with steam coming out of her ears.

Percy's expression turned from anger to worried. Annabeth was his first friend and he didn't want to lose her because of a lame fight on marshmallows. Then again, that _was _the last of their food supply. They could die out here from starvation. Percy tried to say sorry, but Annabeth wouldn't listen to him.

"Anna–," he started.

"I don't want to hear it, Jackson. Just leave me alone," she slumped.

Last names. Percy knew that she was _really _furious about this. Percy turned around to give her some personal space, but he bumped into something. Or rather, _someone_.

**Annabeth POV**

I can't believe the nerve of him! The pig ate _everything_. I know I'm exaggerating, but he did eat _almost _everything. I can't believe he has such a big appetite!

I had just finished another huge argument with Percy. There's no way I'm going to look at him for the next four hours.

"Ow!" Percy yelped.

I failed. The moment I heard Percy fall onto the ground, I turned around, by instinct, to check if he was alright. Percy was sprawled onto the ground, rubbing his forehead.

In front of Percy stood a girl who should be around my age, and held a shield that made me flinch. Her shield had the face of Medusa in the middle. It's pretty scary. The girl had dark black hair like Percy's and electric blue eyes. Her hair was short and spiky. She wore a "Death to Barbie" T-Shirt and a silver circlet around her head.

"Who are you?" I asked, resisting the urge to run over to Percy's side. I just had an argument with him. There's no way I'm going to make myself look like I was going to forgive him.

"Thalia Grace," she says. She said her surname distastefully. "And who might you be?"

"Annabeth Chase," I said cautiously.

"Nice to meet you, Anna. Tell your boyfriend here to watch where he's going next time."

"He's _not _my boyfriend," I scoffed. There's no way I'd be with someone as self-centered as he was.

"Don't like him, huh?" Thalia says thoughtfully.

I just scowled at Percy in response.

"Why don't you join the Hunters then?" Thalia says happily. "I'm the lieutenant of Artemis."

"Hunters?" I questioned. "As in Artemis' Hunters?"

Thalia nodded. "You get to stay immortal and young for the rest of your life! It's pretty great!"

"Wait, but I remember that there's some sort of catch to become a Hunter…" I faltered, racking my brain to figure out what it was.

"Yeah, you have to swear off boys," the girl shrugged.

I shuffled my feet a bit. I wasn't very comfortable with that. I couldn't tell why though.

"You're a half-blood?" she wondered.

"Yeah," I replied softly. "Percy too…" I looked over at his direction, but he was gone.

"You mean that klutz who bumped into my shield? That guy ran over there," she says, pointing at a narrow path in the woods.

Truthfully, I was worried. I wanted to go after him, but at the same time I was still angry. My pride won over and I thought I should chat with Thalia for a while. Who knows? Maybe she could become my friend too. Too. Was Percy still my friend? Or what if he wasn't anymore? What if he left because he didn't want to come back?

"So, who's your parent?" Thalia asked me, snapping me out of my trance.

"Athena," I answered proudly.

Thalia grinned. "Mine's Zeus."

"The god of gods?" I gasped.

Thalia nodded proudly. "So what about that boy? A minor god's?" she laughed.

I frowned. I didn't like the way she talked about Percy, but she's a hunter and swore off boys. She probably hates them. What can she do? "No, actually. He's the son of Poseidon."

Thalia gaped at me, and then laughed so hard that she was rolling around the dirt. "You're joking!" she laughed. "There's no way that he could be Poseidon's son! Children of the big three were _never _even aloud to exist in this world! The three biggest gods formed a pact to never have children anyways!"

I gave a strange look at Thalia. "But you said you're a child of Zeus."

Thalia stopped laughing. She nodded her head solemnly. "I'm a mistake," she wrinkled her nose.

"So Percy was too?" I mumbled to myself.

"Wait, you're serious about Percy being the son of Poseidon?" Thalia raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. His mom told me. I had to explain to him about gods and stuff about three days ago. I still don't know much," I admitted. "He took it pretty calmly. Well, except for the part where he kept shouting that gods were just myths."

To my surprise, Thalia laughed harder than before. "That klutz was my _cousin_?" She continued to laugh for about a few more minutes until she calmed down. "How do you put up with him?"

"I don't know. I just do," I shrugged.

"You like him," she stated. It wasn't even a question.

"I _don't_. Well… before I kind of did. _Kind of_. After a few days of camping with that Idiot, it's hard to get him to stop whining and complaining. He's a stupid, idiotic, sarcastic, and a big-headed kvetcher."

"Ketchup?" Thalia asked, looking very confused.

I sighed. "Kvetcher. Someone who complains a lot."

Thalia started to laugh again. "A son of _Poseidon _complains?" It took an extra four more minutes to her to stop laughing. It's getting kind of aggravating now.

"No wonder he's left over there. That path leads to a river. He probably went to take a bath or something. There's a place for demigods nearby. Well, sort of nearby. It's about a six hour walk," she says.

"That doesn't sound so bad. Maybe we could visit," I decided.

"Might want to look for Percy first," Thalia suggested.

I blushed, "You said he could be taking a bath though."

"Oh right. Then we'll wait 'till he comes back."

We sat down and talked about each other for a while. I also talked about the fight Percy and I just had. I left out the part of Percy being a prince and all. It's his secret to tell, not mine. Anyways, Percy's been gone for over thirty minutes now. So I'm currently in panic mode.

"What if he hates me?" I said, painfully. "What if he doesn't want to see my face again?"

"Hey, it was just a little lover's quarrel. He'll come back in no time," Thalia reassured.

I shot an icy glare at her, and then went back to being worried.

"Oh come on. It's not _that _bad. Well, if it is, you can always come and join the Hunters!" she says enthusiastically.

"That's not exactly helping," I grumbled.

I was pretty quiet for a while. That is, until we heard the sound of rustling bushes. We turned to face whatever it was. It could be a monster for all we know.

To my relief, it was Percy. He stared at us with a blank expression, blinking his eyes at us. "What? Is there something on my face?" he wondered.

I shook my head, resisting another urge to run over to him. I realized Percy was holding something that was…alive, kind of. He held three fishes, flopping about in his arms. They were pretty big too. They looked more like trout to be exact.

"Is that fish?" Thalia asked credulously.

"Unless you're blind, yes they are fish," Percy says smoothly.

"So you went fishing?" I asked.

Percy nodded just when Thalia says, "But you're the son of Poseidon, right? What're going to do with those fish? Eat them?"

"Annabeth was hungry. So I thought I could roast some fish. Plus, they were getting on my nerves," Percy muttered the last part.

"He's nice," Thalia whispered to me with a smirk. Heat crept up to my face. "I thought you said he was selfish?"

I just shrugged at her in reply, trying to cover my blush. I just can't believe Percy would go through all that trouble to get me something to eat. Or maybe it was his way of apologizing for earlier.

"Should I start the fire?" Percy asked.

"It is fine, my cousin. I've got it covered," Thalia rubbed her hands. All of a sudden it smelled like ozone. Thalia pointed over at the pile of sticks and zapped it with lightning, and a fire instantly appeared.

"Cousin?" Percy asked confused.

"Thalia, Daughter of Zeus, at your service," Thalia smirked at him.

"I think my dad's cooler," Percy muttered.

"Who uses the word 'cool' anymore?" Thalia snorted.

"I do," Percy shot back at her.

"Well then. I guess that makes you 'uncool'," she says, using air quotes.

"Whatever," Percy glowered at her.

We roasted our fish by the fire and ate them up quickly.

"So you said something about a place for half-bloods?" I asked Thalia.

"That's right, Anna," Thalia nodded her head.

"What place?" Percy said thoughtfully.

"It's just a small town. We Hunters don't go there much. We like to spend time hunting, obviously. Anyways, the place's called Town Half-Blood," she answered.

* * *

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	2. Chapter 2: Grover Underwood

**Disclaimer: Dear Idiots who thinks I'm Rick Riordan, I am not famous. :D …Yet.**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Two**

The lieutenant of Artemis, Thalia Grace, was leading Percy and Annabeth to Town Half-Blood as soon as she woke them up. They were traveling through the thick green forest.

"It's like five in the morning," Percy moaned, looking at his watch. Again.

"Oh keep quiet, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth muttered, rubbing her eyes so that she'd be fully awake.

"Don't worry, Kelp Head. Just about five and a half hours left of hiking!" his cousin, Thalia says encouragingly.

"Thals, you're making it worse. I can't stand five and a half hours," Percy groaned.

"You're right, Annabeth. He _does _complain a lot," Thalia whispered to her.

Annabeth nodded in response. "Besides, he's lying. He can handle ten hours of walk. I bet he just wants to go back to sleep," she chuckled.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "Typical."

They continued to stroll through the tree filled woods for the next five hours, putting up with Percy's lame jokes and whining before they came for a stop. The sun was shining brightly and birds flew off when we came closer. They took a brake at a small meadow, now far away from the forest, with soft and lush green grass.

**Thalia's POV**

We've decided to stop here for about an hour. We were lucky since there was no sign of monsters so far. I have my bow and quiver with me, but the other two doesn't have a weapon. Their parents must've been hiding their scent. It's a good thing though, but it'll wear off soon enough.

Percy, that lazy fish, plopped down on the grass and started to snore. Not very angelically might I add. Annabeth, who sat beside him, started to stare. Her hand was reaching for his hair until I cleared my throat. She withdrew her hand, looking very flustered.

"Whatcha doin'?" I asked innocently.

"Oh you know, breathing, sitting, the usual," she fidgeted.

"So staring at Percy is something you usually do?"

"I – I wasn't staring at him!" she stammered.

"You like him," I said. I remembered saying that to her last night too.

"I don't like him!" she denied.

"That's what they all say before falling in love," I smirked.

"Oh what do you know?" she muttered.

In truth, she was right. I had no experience in love whatsoever. I just joined the hunters so that'd I'd be stronger and immortal, not because of boys like most Hunters. It's worth it though.

"How old are you exactly?" Annabeth asked me.

"Fifteen. I joined the Hunters last year. If I didn't, I would've been sixteen," I answered. "You're fifteen too, aren't you?"

"Yeah, but I'm turning sixteen soon next month. Your hobby?" she says.

"Throwing pinecones," I answered coolly.

"Pinecones?" she laughed.

"Yeah, I'd throw pinecones at people who irritate me, pinecones the ground to see how far they go, pinecones in the sky to see how high it'd reach, pinecones at people like Percy here just for fun," I smiled.

"So should I call you Pinecone Face?" muffled a voice. We turned over to the direction of the sound. Percy.

Percy sat up with that goofy grin of his. He smiled politely at Annabeth, and she just blushed and smiled shyly back. Then she turned to face her feet. Oh right, we had a conversation about Annabeth staring at Percy earlier. I forgot about that. My bad.

"How long have you been awake? The entire time?" I wondered.

"That's right. Your annoying voice woke me up from my three second nap," Percy joked.

"Ha-ha," I laughed humourlessly. "You didn't have to pretend you were asleep."

Percy opened his mouth as if he was about to say something stupid, but he was interrupted but someone bleating like a goat. Or rather, _is _a goat. Well, half goat, but he's still a goat. In front of the satyr was a huge fluffy sheep. It's so fluffy that I bet it'd make a great pillow.

"Thalia!" shouted the satyr. "Get that sheep!"

"Who's that?" Annabeth asked.

"His name's Grover, a satyr. He's a shepherd," I answered.

A sheep came ramming at us, so I shocked it with my shield, causing it to stop running. Grover, the goat boy, caught up with the fat sheep and put his arm around the sheep's neck and started to haul it away from us.

"Sorry," Grover apologized. "This one's a tough sheep."

Grover had goat legs with hooves and fur, but he covered it with a pair of jeans and sneakers. He was human on the top half. He wore a green T-shirt that read "Going Green!" and a straw hat to cover his horns. Sometimes humans could waltz by, and it'd be weird if they found Grover goat hooves instead of feet.

"That's fine," I shrugged, tapping my shield so that it's turn back to my bracelet.

Grover turned to Percy and Annabeth and sniffed the air. "Hi. My name's Grover Underwood. Are you two half-bloods?"

Percy and Annabeth nodded. "This Annabeth Chase," I introduced her Grover. "And this is Percy…what's your last name again?"

"I never told you my last name," Percy said to me. "I'm Percy Jackson," he smiled to Grover.

Percy Jackson, he said? His name sounded familiar, but I can't seem to remember. Eh, he was probably unimportant at the time.

"It's nice to meet you, Percy and Annabeth. You're heading to Town Half-Blood?" he asked me.

"That's right. It's just about half an hour left of walk. We're just resting," I yawned. "Great, Percy's laziness rubbed off on me," I muttered.

Grover and Annabeth laughed, but Percy looked at the ground sheepishly. I smirked.

"So uh, when do we get going?" Percy wondered.

"What? Before you've been begging us to stop and rest. Now you want to keep going?" Annabeth faked a shock expression.

"Somebody's embarrassed," I mocked Percy.

"Hey, let's not make fun of the poor guy," Grover says. "I can lead you guys there. My farm's in Town Half-Blood anyways."

"Thanks Grover," Percy says appreciatively. He gave us girls the 'shame-on-you' look and moved his left index finger to indicate a 'no' sign.

Grover saw this and chuckled. "Let's go then," he said with determination, still holding onto his sheep.

"Baa," says the fluffy wool pillow.

"Where are we again?" Grover muttered to himself.

"This way, Grover," I grumbled, as I stormed off to the direction of Town Half-Blood.

"I knew that!" Grover called behind me as he galloped over to catch up.

I heard Annabeth and Percy snickering. We walked silently across the large meadow, and yes, Percy did not whine or complain. To my surprise, neither did Grover or the sheep. We were quiet for about twenty minutes of walking until Percy's and Grover's stomach decided to growl.

"Boys," I mumbled to myself.

"Can we eat?" Grover asked.

"The sheep looks tasty," Percy commented. Grover stared angrily at him and the sheep looked like it was going to wet it's…wool. "Dude, I was kidding."

Grover relaxed after hearing that. "Good," he says.

"Grover's a vegetarian," I explained. "All satyrs are eco-friendly. They're patrons of Pan."

"I thought so," Annabeth murmured to herself.

"So what is there to eat?" Percy asked.

"Enchiladas?" Grover hoped.

"No, Enchilada Freak, we don't have any with us. We're almost there to Half-Blood hill. Oh, well what do know? It's right in front of us," I said.

There was a huge hill where Town Half-Blood lies. In front of the entrance was my favourite pinecone tree.

"I'll race you!" I challenged them as I sprinted up the hill.

"Cheater!" I heard Percy call out, chasing me. "Hey! How'd you run so fast, Annabeth?"

I heard Annabeth laughing until I saw her running beside me.

"Oh my gods! That girl can run!" Percy panted.

"Wait for me!" Grover shouted behind us.

"Baa!" the sheep agreed.

I was almost there, and I was an inch faster than Annabeth. I took a quick glance behind me to see Percy staggering after us and Grover riding on his sheep behind Percy. Grover must've got some crazy guts to do that. The next day, if his sheep wakes up becoming as flat as a pancake, I'm not going to answer how it happened to Grover. He should know.

Sadly, Annabeth came in first place, I came second by less than a minute, and Percy stumbled third with Grover and the sheep as forth.

"That was so much fun!" Annabeth laughed. "It was the most fun I've had in my life!"

"Seriously?" Grover panted. "This…was so tiring…"

"Dude, you did nothing," Percy says, breathing heavily.

"Baa!" the sheep exhaled loudly.

"Oh really, Tommy?" Grover challenged.

"Tommy?" Annabeth questioned.

"Er, I'm bad with names," Grover flushed with embarrassment.

"Good to know," says Percy.

"My sides hurt," I groaned.

"Mine too," Percy agreed.

"I want enchiladas," Grover sighed. The four of us, including the sheep, stared at Grover weirdly. "What? Enchiladas are _good_," he bleated.

Right in front of our faces was a small town. It had farms of sheep, cows, chickens and whatnot. There was a flower shop, a library, a small diner, a school, an arena for weapon training, the forges, Pegasus stable, a park, a small harbour, the Big House where the mayor, Chiron lives, and a general store. There was also a beach and a canoe lake, as well as the strawberry field and a graveyard. There were little districts of houses and you'd be living in a house on a certain district depending on your godly parent. It was a very lively place, but there weren't a lot of demigods. I'd say population fifty at most.

"Well, we're here," I breathed. "Town Half-Blood at last."

* * *

**Ooooh~**

**They're here! They're at Town Half-Blood!**

**Oh My Gods!**

**What's gonna happen next! ? ?**

**Percabeth moments might happen in the next chapter~**

**Maybe. I dunno. I mean, I just scribble down what pops into my mind. In truth, I've got NO idea what's gonna happen. **

**I'm drinking 7up. You readers must be jealous.**

**BTW, I was thinking of updating yesterday, but then my internet crashed, so I updated today instead :D**

**My friend, Cocoberrii, was like, "Give me a preview!" like every five minutes or so. Then I'd be like, "I JUST gave you one!"**

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_**I know, I know, You don't have to say it. I'm awesome, amazing, dazzling, and breathtakingly marvelous. :D **_

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	3. Chapter 3: Silena and Beckendorf

**Disclaimer: PJO is sadly, way too awesome for me to own. D: The awesomeness is so awesome that it blinds me. But my awesomeness is so awesome that it blinds YOU. That's right, I'm THAT awesome :D **

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Three**

Grover skedaddled back to his sheep farm and Thalia was guiding Percy and Annabeth to the Big House to find someone named Chiron. They kept walking until they were facing an old three level tall blue building. Thalia entered the large house without knocking on the door. Percy and Annabeth glanced at each other before following Thalia.

"Chiron?" she called.

A centaur, Chiron, was playing pinochle with a grumpy fat looking man. Chiron looked up from his cards and smiled when he saw the lieutenant of Artemis.

"Thalia!" he greeted.

"Great. Tara's back," the fat man snorted.

"It's nice to see you too, Mr. D," Thalia says sarcastically.

"Who are these two children?" Chiron smiled over at Annabeth and Percy.

"I'm Annabeth Chase."

"Percy Jackson."

Chiron rubbed his hairy chin as he examined them. "You must be a daughter of Athena," he says to Annabeth. "I can tell by your eyes."

Annabeth smiled and nodded politely.

"You are?" says the centaur to Percy.

"Son of Poseidon," he answered.

The centaur looked startled for a quick moment. "A son of Poseidon you say? That is quite a surprise."

"It's your move," says the grumpy man, looking trying to peek at Chiron's cards.

"Anyways, my name is Chiron," he introduced himself. "As you can see, I am a centaur. I'm the mayor of this town. Mr. D here is a god; he's ordered to accompany me."

"Dionysus?" Annabeth guessed.

"That's right," Chiron grinned.

"So he's the wine dude?" says Percy.

"I will turn you into a bottle of merlot, Peter," Mr. D threatened.

"Um, my name's Percy," he corrected.

"Whatever, Pierre," he grunted.

Percy was starting to dislike him. "I said, my name–"

"So, Chiron!" Thalia interrupted, quickly shooting an icy glare at Percy. "How about I show Percy and Anna around?"

"That'd be a nice idea, but I think I'll have Silena give them a tour around. You might want to stick with them too. There're some new campers you might want to meet," says Chiron, his eyes strangely twinkling with happiness or something. Or something no demigod has ever seen from Chiron. Mischief. Neither Thalia, Percy, nor Annabeth could tell, but Chiron was up to something.

Thalia looked a bit disappointed and sad, oblivious by whatever Chiron was thinking. She wanted to be the one to guide Percy and Annabeth around since they're pretty fun to be with. She's always wanted to give someone a tour around Town Half-Blood too.

"You've only been here a short couple of times, Thalia," Chiron tried to explain. "There have been some new leaders, and a few changes around town. Silena will introduce you to some of the new people," he smiled warmly.

Thalia felt a bit better and agreed.

**Annabeth's POV**

"Take them to Silena, and she'll give you three a quick tour," Chiron says to Thals.

"Thanks, Chiron," Thalia thanked.

As we left the door, I turned around to politely wave good-bye, and Chiron returned the action. Mr. D glumly sat there, staring at his cards. I'm guessing he was about to lose… Ack! Hades! Gods can read minds! I need to be careful about what I think!

_Damn straight_, says a voice. It belonged to Mr. D.

I gulped and nodded.

"See you later Chiron!" called Percy. "You too, Wine Dude! Hey, that rhymes!" he laughs to himself.

Mr. D shot daggers at Percy, but said nothing. Chiron was strictly glaring at Mr. D. I guess that's what's stopping him from turning Percy into wine. That idiot's going to be a glass of merlot soon enough. He's going to have to watch that tongue of his.

We left the Big House and headed down a long pathway. We ended up at a crossroad, and we followed Thalia to the left. We kept walking until there were a bunch of signs pointing at a whole bunch of different directions. Thalia took the Aphrodite lane, which kind of scared me.

"Um, are we going the right way?" I asked. "Isn't this the Aphrodite district?"

"Yeah, Silena's a daughter of Aphrodite. Uh, hey. You look pretty pale there, Anna. Is something wrong?" Thalia kindly asked.

I furiously shook my head, remembering Aphrodite's visit back at Atlantis when I had lived with my torturous stepmother and stepbrothers. Aphrodite came cooing over my future relationships or whatever. I zoned out through most of her useless nonsense about love, but I've got a hunch that Percy has something to do with it. Thinking about it got a blush to appear on my face.

"Your face is red," Percy commented. "Do you have a fever or something? Do you want to rest?"

"I'm fine," I said, but my face got into a deeper shade of red, and I started to feel lightheaded. Does he care that much for me?

"Want me to carry you?" Percy suggested.

"What?" I asked, flabbergasted by his offer. I swear on the Styx, It's impossible for my face to get any redder.

"On my back. Do you want me to carry you? You look like you're about to pass out," he says.

He got that right. My head's starting to feel dizzy. "Uh, I'm fine," I said.

"Hey Anna? You're walking all wobbly," Thalia commented.

"I can carry you, you know?" Percy says, looking concerned.

"I'm perfectly capable of walking. You two are treating me like a three year old," I groaned.

"Alright then, we're here," Thalia says.

The three of us stood in front of a pink painted door of a red bricked house, and the heat on my face disappeared. It doesn't look very big, but not too small either. The building was coated with glitter and sparkles, and a bunch of flowers. The architecture of this building is okay, but not the best. I've designed some houses that are a lot better. What can I say? I want to be an architect. Oh, I didn't mention that earlier? Whoops. Sorry.

Thalia knocked on the door and it swung open, revealing a girl who looks to be about our age. She had straight black hair and baby blue eyes. She wore a pink blouse and white jeans. She's a complete description of pretty. A lot of guys must've drooled over her like dogs. Her smile was gleaming in the sunlight.

I turned over at Percy to see him with wide eyes, staring at the girl. I felt something heavy against my chest. It hurt. What is this feeling? I'm starting to hate this girl.

"Oh, hi! It's been so long, Thalia! You haven't changed a bit," the girl smiled widely.

"Hey, Silena. Chiron wanted you to give us a tour around Town Half-Blood. He says that there are some new people, and wants you to introduce me to them too," says Thalia.

The girl, Silena peered over at us. "Hi! I'm Silena Beaureguard," she says.

"Hi," I said glumly. "Annabeth Chase."

"Hey, I'm Percy Jackson," he smiled that stupid lopsided smile. It made my heart flutter a little, until I realized he wasn't smiling at me. I hated it.

"So I'm going to give you three a tour around here?" the girl asked.

Thalia nodded in reply.

"Alright then, let's go! Oh! We can visit the forge first!" she says excitedly. "My boyfriend's over there. I can introduce you to him!"

A boyfriend, she says? I kind of felt better after hearing that. When I looked over at Percy, his smile didn't falter. So maybe he doesn't like Silena that way. Why am I thinking this? I don't like him. I _can't _like him. Stupid Percy. Why can't he stop smiling already?

"What's his name?" Percy asked.

"Charles Beckendorf. But everyone just calls him by his last name. Only I call him by his first name," Silena smiles.

"Last time I was here, you weren't dating anybody," says Thalia.

"That's because I had a crush on Charlie for _years_. There's no way I'd want to date anyone but him," Silena explained, looking all dreamy. "What about you? Are you and Percy together? You two look so cute!"

Ah, here comes the heat in my face. "Wha– No! He's not– We're not– I mean, I don't– He doesn't," I continued to stutter.

I saw Thalia at the corner of my eye, smirking at me. Traitor!

"Aw, Annie has a crush on somebody!" Silena cooed.

Stupid Aphrodite girls. "I _don't _have a crush on _anybody_," I snarled. "Especially not Percy. And don't call me Annie. I hate it," I told her.

I blurted it all out before knowing what I had said. I'm telling you, this wasn't like me at _all_. I'm the kind of person who thinks before they speak. Maybe a god cursed me. Or maybe I just didn't think. I turned over to Percy, and he wouldn't meet my eye. I felt a twinge of guilt. But he doesn't like me that way, right?

"You made Percy sad," Silena pouted. "Why don't you kiss him and make it all better?" she smirked.

Evil. That's what they are. Aphrodite and her children are _evil_. They're exact duplicates of their mother.

I twitched my left eye, trying my best not to look too flustered at the moment. "How about we just go to the forge now, okay?" I said, trying my best to stay calm.

"Oh! Charlie! We need to go see him!" Silena squealed.

At least that conversation is over, but I know it'll start again soon.

We traveled over to the forges. They place was unorganized, sweaty, hot, and seriously burning. The air was thick and it was dark. Only the fire and gas lamps provided light in this place.

I spotted a shadow moving towards us. I didn't react to it. When the silhouette appeared in front of the flames, I got a good look at him.

The person standing in front of us was an African American guy with black hair. He had brown eyes and a gentle smile. His clothes clung onto him from sweat, and he was covered in oil or something greasy. I couldn't tell what it was.

"Charlie!" Silena exclaimed, and gave him a big hug. Ew. I did say he was sweaty, right? Right. Maybe she isn't a normal Aphrodite girl, but still probably likes meddling with people's love lives just as much.

"Hey, Silena," Silena's boyfriend said. He looked at us. "So who are these?"

"Oh! This is Percy and Annabeth. You know Thalia right?" Silena introduced.

"It's nice to meet you Perce and Anna. My name's Charles Beckendorf. Most people just call me Beckendorf. It's good to see you again, Thalia, although we really haven't talked before," he says.

"It's good to see you too, Beckendork," Thalia insulted. She's probably wanted to say that for an awful while now. Silena shot Thalia her number one glare. "I mean, Beckendorf," she corrected herself.

Beckendorf laughed. "Oh, it's fine," he says.

"So you build stuff?" Percy asks.

"That's right. Weapon and armour especially," he smiled.

"Whoa, weapons and armour?" Percy says in awe. It's a pretty cute expression. What am I thinking?

"Yeah, I make this stuff for the arena, so you can practice with them. That way, you can try to stay alive against monsters," Beckendork – I mean, Beckendorf explained. Thalia's really rubbing off on me.

"So we can fight and stuff?" asks Percy.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "Kelp Head, you have to go to school too."

Percy groaned, and that made Silena giggle. "But school's great!" That's a surprise. "The teacher doesn't care about your absence or if you're just putting on makeup." That explains it.

"Who's the teacher?" Percy wondered.

"Mr. D," she answered. That explains that.

"But don't insult him," Thalia warned. "He already threatened you into becoming wine."

"Will Mr. D drink me then?" Percy questioned.

"Yes. I'm sure he will," Beckendorf says.

"That's disgusting," Percy gaped.

I stifled a laugh. I realized I hadn't spoken since we arrived here. "Then you better watch that tongue of yours. I'm sure you're on his bad side already," I finally said.

"He sure is," Thalia sighed. "I feel sorry for you, Cuz'."

"I should continue with our quick tour, Charlie. I'll see you later!" Silena says enthusiastically.

"Alright. Bye Perce, Anna, and Thals. I'll see you later, Silena," Beckendorf smiled.

We left the hot forges and into the bright sunlight and cool breeze.

"Where to now?" I ask.

"The graveyard," Silena smirked over at Thalia. "I'm sure you'll love it there, Thals."

"And why is that?" Thalia scoffed. "It's a place for dead people."

"The place isn't deserted, you know? Besides, I just _know_ you'll love it," Silena said. I may have just met her, but that smile of hers? Not a good sign. It's not a good sign at all.

* * *

**I am SO sorry for not updating it for like, three freaking days! -GASP-**

**My excuse: Homework, chores, and the dentist. **

**I don't like the dentist.**

**I really don't.**

**I didn't bother to check the spelling or grammar errors :D**

**I know all of you wanted to read it so badly, so I just updated it :D**

**And because I got lazy.**

**But let's stick with the first one, kays? **

**Oh, and guess who'll be in the graveyard?**

**Pffft, it's so obvious. Silena, that Aphrodite matchmaker :D**

**Anyways, I finished my strawberry milkshake. OMFG Noooooo!**

**My sweet tasting strawberry goodness! It's gone! **

**I'm going to get a bottle of 7up after this... :D**

**That's right, readers. Be jealous :D**

**I'd like to thank you all too awesome reviewers (but I'm awesomer for updating this) for reviewing! **

**(I'm sorry. You can say I can [sometimes] be [a little] big-headed. But if you haven't read my profile, you should have already known that :D)**

**So please review! (And read my awesomely spectacular profile if you haven't read it yet. If you did, I kind of added some stuff too.) :D**

**The more reviews the faster I'll try and update!**

**(PS. Try to put "C-Nuggets N.L is SO awesome!" in your reviews. I know you want to ;D)**


	4. Chapter 4: Nico di Angelo

**Disclaimer: Pshaw, I do NOT own PJO. But I do own this pile of homework in my hands. It's sad…**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Four**

Silena was dragging Thalia with Percy and Annabeth walking behind her. She was _literally_ dragging her. You can see her lying on the ground lazily and groaning as Silena pulled her arm. Percy and Annabeth walked for about ten minutes with Silena in front of them, dragging Thalia until they noticed something different.

The atmosphere around them wasn't happy and sunny anymore. It started to get dark and gloomy. The trees were black and dead, and the pathway was made of dirt rather than stone. It was cold and gave you shivers down your back. The place was covered in shadows. It wasn't the prettiest place in Town Half-Blood.

Thalia sprang up onto her feet and clung onto the riff of Silena's sleeve, and she did the same. She's an Aphrodite girl, so of course she'd be scared. But the lieutenant of Artemis? That just means the place would seriously scare the wits out of you.

Percy wasn't scared at all. In fact, he was grinning as if the place didn't seem so bad. Percy had the feeling that this place wasn't as terrifying as it seems.

Annabeth was trying to look brave. Obvious because of that pride of hers. She tried to stand straight and tall like Percy was; she doesn't want to look like a wimp. Truthfully she was really frightened. She felt the chills run down her back and she was shivering, but she was trying to hide it. She was good at it too.

But Percy was the only one who instantly noticed this.

**Percy POV**

I was walking beside Annabeth in the dark, dead treed forest with Silena and Thalia in front of us. The two of them were clinging onto each other. I was about to stifle out a laugh until I saw that Annabeth looked scared too, and I started to worry. I can tell that she was trying to look unafraid, but I could tell in her eyes. She was definitely terrified.

We swung our arms as we walked. I wanted to wrap my arms around her and tell her that'd it'll be alright. But she'd punch me for that. I'm sure of it. I wanted her to know that'd I'd be there for her though. What should I do?

The back of her hand brushed against mine as we swung our arms. I looked at her face and she was blushing. Maybe she wanted to hold my hand? I brushed my hand against her hand this time and she grabbed onto it. Her fingers curled around my hand and it was warm. I felt a spark of electricity once she held my hand. It wasn't like Thalia's spark. She shocked me once with lightning…That one hurt. This one felt different.

Great, now I'm all flustered. I looked up to see that Annabeth was too. She was trying to look away from me. She's definitely embarrassed. I smiled to myself at this.

We walked silently for five or seven minutes, I think. We ended up at an archway and a sign that read, "Graveyard. Enter at your will." I think it's meant to be scary.

Annabeth squeezed my hand with a worried expression on her face. I squeezed her hand and smiled to her, reassuring her that it'd be fine. She plastered on a fake smile and the four of us walked into the graveyard.

"H-Hello?" Silena squeaked.

"Hey, can we go back now?" Thalia hoped.

"N-Not y-yet," Silena stammered at the sound of howling wolves.

Well, they sounded like wolves. What are those mythological creatures called again? Oh yeah. Hellhounds.

Annabeth didn't speak. She just tugged on my sleeve and pointed at a silhouette. She backed up and hugged my arm, causing heat to rise into my face.

"Who's that?" I asked.

"Who? What? Where?" Thalia shrieked.

"Hey!" I called out to the shadow, waving at it.

"You're being _friendly_?" Annabeth asked.

"What's wrong with that?" I wondered.

Annabeth shook her head in reply, hiding behind me from the shadow.

"Is-Is that you?" Silena asked the shadow.

"Who exactly are you referring to?" asked the mysterious person.

Silena sighed in relief. "Nico, come out here. I want you to meet some people," she says.

The shadow walked closer into the candle light. And yes, this place has candles scattered everywhere. I got a good look at him.

He looked to be about the age of fifteen or sixteen. Our age. He wore an aviator's jacket and a black T-Shirt with a skull and crossed bones. He wore black jeans and had unruly raven hair like mine. Except, he has longer hair than I do. The boy looked to be around my age, and he had pale olive skin and dark brown eyes. He was playing with a purple looking gem in his hands.

"Hi. My name's Nico di Angelo," he introduced himself.

"Percy Jackson," I grinned. What? It's nice meeting new people.

"Annabeth Chase," she croaked. It made her sound…hot. Ew, what are you thinking, Percy?

"Thalia," says the lieutenant of Artemis. The boy raised his eyebrow. "Grace," she growled.

Nico smiled at her. "Well, I'm known as the graveyard keeper around here," he says.

"A place like this?" Thalia scowled. "You like it here?"

"It's alright," Nico shrugged. "I was assigned to be here."

"Why?" asked Annabeth.

"Son of Hades," he answered.

Thalia's eyes widened and Silena smirked. "So…you're a child of one of the big three?" she says.

"Duh. It's what I said," Nico rolled his eyes. "What about you? Ares?" he scoffed.

Thalia snorted; her eyes flared. "I'm telling you, my father is much stronger than yours," she says angrily. "And my father is _not _Ares."

"Thalia is the lieutenant of Artemis!" Silena explained to Nico. "She's the daughter of Zeus."

Nico's eyes widened. But his shock quickly subsided. "Lieutenant of Artemis?" he muttered to himself.

"And daughter of Zeus," Thalia added for him.

"Well, it's nice meeting you three," Nico grunted.

"Oh, you're mother is Athena, right?" Silena asked Annabeth.

She smiled and nodded. "The brightest and smartest goddess on Olympus," she says proudly.

"My Dad's better," Percy murmured.

"I heard that, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth growled.

"Why do you call me that?" I groaned.

"Because your brain is the size of a pea. The rest of your head's filled with kelp," Annabeth smirked.

"Oh yeah? Well…I'll nickname you too!" I threatened.

"Oh really, now?" Annabeth challenged.

"Yeah! That's right! I'll call you…Wise Girl!" I exclaimed.

Annabeth fell over laughing, letting go of her arms that were around mine to hold her sides.

"That's the best you've got?" she laughed.

"Percy, that's more like a compliment than an insult," Thalia says, chuckling.

"He's bad with nicknames," Silena nodded to herself.

"Who's your dad?" Nico asked Percy.

"Poseidon," I said with pride. "The god of seas, earthquakes, and the god who created horses." I smiled at their expression.

Nico looked shocked for a quick moment. Annabeth and Thalia looked content since they already knew about it. Actually, Annabeth was still chuckling about the nickname I gave her. What? Wise Girl wasn't such a bad name…

Silena's happy face fell from what I had said. "You mean…All three gods broke the pact?"

"Seems like it," Thalia says.

"Cool, so you're like my cousin?" Nico asked Percy.

"That's right," I beamed.

"Me too," Thalia scoffed. "And who says 'cool' anymore?"

"I do," Nico and I chorused.

We smirked at each other. I'm starting to like this Nico dude.

My stomach growled. "Er…when's lunch?" I asked.

"We can go to the restaurant now," Silena suggested. "Then finish up with the tour. I think I've got some dirt in my nails…" Nico, Annabeth, Thalia and I rolled our eyes. Aphrodite girls.

"Let's go then," Nico decided.

We followed him out of the graveyard and started our way to the restaurant. We were almost there; at least that's what Nico said, before I bumped into someone.

That someone was huge and bulky. Surprisingly a girl. She wore a red bandana, and a red T-shirt along with a camouflage patterned pants. She's got brown furious eyes glowering at me. What's so scary about this girl? Everything. She's got this terrifying aura around her. What's worse, you ask? She was holding a spear. Yes, a spear.

"Clarisse!" Silena clapped her hand happily.

What? is she _friends _with this horrifying person?

_Stop glaring at me! _I thought.

She didn't.

* * *

**What a short chapter.**

**Eh, I rushed through it.**

**Oh well. **

**I got sick...Stupid runny nose =3=**

**You fans must be disappointed with this chapter, huh? It's so short D: **

**Eh. Anyways, I've decided on writing another fan fiction.**

**(Here's a quick summary:**

******Hera has volunteered to teach the demigods in Camp Half-Blood about marriage. Now everyone has to pair up with somebody and be "married" for the rest of the summer.)**

Mmhm... So tell me what you guys think! :D

What I meant by that was to tell me what you guys think of this chapter I just updated _and_ the new fan fiction I plan on writing. :3

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!**

**yeah... not much to write here... **


	5. Chapter 5: Chrisse and The Stoll Bros

**Disclaimer: You can read that right? You want me to spell it out for you? D-i-s-c-l-a-i-m-e-r. Happy?**

**OC: Mary Davis, by The Daughter of the Greek Gods. ;D **

**Please don't ask for adding another OC in my story, dear readers, unless I ask for one (which I highly doubt I will) because OCs confuse me. It's hard for me to try to memorize all the new characters that aren't from Rick Riordan. I have a memory span of a goldfish, okay? **

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Five**

The girl, Clarisse glowered down at Percy as if he was a tiny cockroach. She wasn't alone though. She had one guy behind her. He put his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, hey. He's not worth it. Let him be. You've got better things to do, right?" the guy told Clarisse in a very friendly tone of voice.

Clarisse's eyes were still flaring and glued to Percy, but seemed to calm down a bit. Percy still had his butt on the floor, shuddering in fear.

"Clarisse, this is Percy," Silena introduced her to him. "Over here's Annabeth and you remember Thalia."

"Prissy, huh?" Clarisse said, thoughtfully.

"Um, it's Percy," Percy corrected.

"Shut it, Prissy!" Clarisse snapped.

"Percy," he grumbled.

"Do you want to die?" Nico asked him as if he heard Percy say that he willingly wanted to jump off Olympus. Like how Hephaestus got thrown off Olympus by Hera. Nico has a weird imagination.

"Percy, do you always go running around for trouble?" Thalia groaned.

"No. They usually come to me first," he smiled at his remark.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Get your head fixed," she muttered to him.

"Nah, I don't feel like it, Wise Girl," he replied.

"Is he on a roll or something?" Silena whispered to Thalia.

She just shrugged in response.

"Seriously, Seaweed Brain? You know, you and Grover both have the same unnaturally large appetite _and _skill for horrible names," Annabeth scoffed.

Percy sat there, staring at Annabeth. "Wait! Don't say anything!" he says before Annabeth could say another word. "I can counter that! Wait…It's on the tip of my tongue…"

Annabeth just laughed at how dimwitted he was, and Percy couldn't help but mesmerize the sound of her laugh. Now he's got that almost unrecoverable silly grin he can't wipe off no matter what. Almost.

Just as Annabeth calmed down, Clarisse asked, "So this is Prissy's girlfriend?"

Annabeth and Percy choked on air. The rest of the group burst into laughter.

"Hey! That's not funny!" Percy shouted. But of course, his voice was overpowered by the sound of his new friends laughing (excluding Clarisse, maybe).

The cheeks on Percy and Annabeth were burned from embarrassment.

"That's – That's a good one, Clarisse!" Thalia laughed.

"Aw, whose side are you on?" Percy complained.

"Mine!" she answered, still laughing.

"Aw, _so _cute!" Silena cooed.

"Young love," Nico mused like an old man.

Clarisse smirked at Percy, and the guy she was with had an apologetic look on his face.

Thalia wiped a tear away from her eye as her laugh faltered. "This is Clarisse la Rue and Chris Rodriguez. Clarisse is the daughter of Ares. If you had a brain, you'd know not to mess with her," she explained to Percy and Annabeth. Thalia turned over to Percy and added hastily, "But you don't have one."

Annabeth chuckled at that one, making Percy blush. "I do too!" he protested.

"Whatever, I don't have time for an argument. I need to get back to Artemis soon," Thalia waved off what Percy had said, and making Nico feel a bit disappointed.

"Chris is a son of Hermes," Silena says.

"But you can trust him more than you can trust the Stolls," Nico muttered to himself.

"The Stolls?" Annabeth asked.

"Anyone called?" says a voice.

"Of course someone did," says another.

"Because we're _awesome_," they said in unison.

**Nico's POV**

Ugh. Here they are. The Stolls.

"Twins of Hermes," says Silena to Percy and Annabeth.

"Thieves _and _stalkers," I murmured to myself.

I was sure nobody heard me, but it seems that Thalia did, since she stood next to me. She laughed at my comment, and I couldn't help but tug a smile. Everyone gave us questioning looks. I just shrugged as if I knew nothing.

"I'm Conner Stoll," one of the twins introduced themselves to Percy and Annabeth.

"And I'm Travis Stoll," says the other.

"Together, we're just known as the Stoll Brothers," they chorused together with their arms in the air.

Percy chuckled. "Your last name is Stoll?" he says.

The two nodded.

"And you're a son of Hermes?"

They nodded again.

Percy started to laugh out loud. Everyone gave him skeptical looks, all except Annabeth. She was staring at Percy with a blush, but he doesn't seem to realize it. She must be blushing at his laugh.

I nudged at Thalia's shoulder and gestured toward the destined couple. She smirked evilly at them. Then she turned to me with a shy smile. It's starting to feel a little hot in here…Never mind, the heat seemed to have disappeared quickly.

"Stolls and Stole?" Percy says to the twins. "Don't you get it?"

They shook their head.

"Don't bother, Perce. They're brainless worms like you," Thalia says.

I couldn't help but laugh at that one. That remark? Hilarious. Thalia grinned at me, but everyone gave me a weird look. I guess they didn't find it that as funny as I did.

"I thought you were on _my _side," Percy pouted. I glanced at Thalia, and she glanced back at me. We both noticed how Annabeth was looking flustered, trying to not look at Percy. Probably the pouty face.

"Actually," I started. "I can switch sides when I feel like it. But I'll be with you ninety percent of the time," I said, faking enthusiasm.

"Aw, so you're going to be with Thalia ten percent of the time? Won't she feel lonely?" Percy countered.

Right then and there, before I was about to even comprehend what Percy had said, Thalia punched his guts and shot lightning at Percy several times. I watched him jump up and down. It was a fun sight to see.

In the corner of my eye, I saw something really scary. Its Silena's wicked grin and determined looking eyes. There's this one look that means she's planning on setting two people together. This look? It means she's stirring up something worse. I feel sorry for Percy and Annabeth. Oh well, nothing to do with me at least. Hip-hip, hurray.

"Hey, can I beat him up too?" Clarisse's eyes sparkled in hope.

"What? No! Ow! I'm dying here! I don't want – Ow! – Anymore people trying to kill me!" Percy shouted as Thalia continued to kick his sides.

"Your fault for wanting to complete the goal of earning first place on everybody's to-murder list," Annabeth scoffed at him.

Percy glared at her as Thalia was just about finished beating him up. Annabeth gave him her smug looking smile. Then I spotted an evil glint in his eyes, and Annabeth's eyes widened as if she realized it. His smirk grew larger. What was he going to do?

"You wouldn't," Annabeth says.

"Want to try me?" Percy asked innocently.

Annabeth sprinted away from Percy, and he scrambled off to chase her. We were confused for a moment.

"Aw, let the lovebirds have their fun," Chris says. "Come on, Clarisse. Let's head over to the arena and train."

Clarisse agreed and the duo left.

"Aw, Annabeth's taken?" Conner whined.

"Will be. It's obvious that she has a crush on Percy," Silena says. "Remember what'll happen if you mess up my plans," she threatened to Conner.

Oh right. One time, Silena was trying to get two people to like each other, but Conner got in the way by flirting with the girl. She did something very…well, not nice to Conner.

"Ooh! And there's going to be a party at Mary's place this evening!" Silena squealed.

Who is Mary you ask? She's a daughter of Apollo. Friendly person, yes, but also a partier and sometimes helps out with the Stolls' pranks.

"You're going to dress them up like Barbie dolls and throw them to the party then?" Travis wondered.

"That's about it!" she smiled. "But nobody, and I mean _nobody_ interrupts my plan, _got it_?" she snapped.

The twins furiously nodded their heads.

"Where are Percy and Annabeth?" I asked.

"There," Thalia pointed.

Annabeth was squirming, rolling and laughing on the grass with Percy on top, tickling her. That was what Percy was going to do to her? Tickle her? Was Thalia ticklish too? Er, just wondering. I mean, she's the lieutenant of Artemis after all. I _can't _like her. Even if I can't, I won't. I think.

"We, uh, got to go," says Travis.

"Oh right!" says Conner. "We've got, ah, some business to do."

To summarize what they meant in one word: Pranks.

They rushed off leaving Thalia, Silena, Percy tickling Annabeth, and me.

I coughed loudly, so that Percy would be able to hear me. He stopped tickling Annabeth and she punched him in the stomach so that he'd get off of her.

"You could've kneed him," Thalia suggested.

"Of course she wouldn't do that. If she did, she might not have any kids with Percy," Silena explained.

"Wh–what? No! I–I don't! Th–That's–!" Annabeth stuttered.

She's lying.

No one seemed to notice this yet. How funny.

"Let's not tease her about it," Thalia shrugged.

"Oh, sure. Be nice to her, but not me," Percy says casually.

"Yeah, 'cause she's my best friend!" Thalia grinned. "You're just a pathetic little cousin."

Percy pouted and Annabeth blushed. She seems to blush a lot. Wait – does that mean I'm a pathetic little cousin too? I might as well not ask. I might get beat up.

"Is Nico a pathetic cousin too?" Percy asked. …Shut up, Perce. Why did you need to bring that loud mouth of yours along?

"No, he's different," Thalia said, making a little heat rise to my face.

Thanks, Perce. Now keep that mouth of yours shut before you say anything more stupid.

"So you like him?"

Don't say I didn't warn you because I did. Mentally. It still counts.

Thalia's eyes glowed.

"I – I meant as cousins," Percy tried to cover. "You like him better than me as cousins?"

Nice save.

"Of course I do. You talk too much," Thalia answered.

I stifled a laugh.

"Can we go eat now? I need to use the restaurant's bathroom. My nails are dirty," Silena complained.

That's reason why I don't like Aphrodite girls. Most of them are clingy and cares so much about beauty and hygiene. Only a couple of them don't. Silena's considered as the less clingy type. There's another one, Piper. But that doesn't matter.

Percy's stomach growled. So did mine. Annabeth and Thalia laughed, making us blush. So _that's _what the heat on my face was. I don't remembering blushing before in my entire life…

"Let's go eat then," Annabeth suggested, hugging Percy's arm.

His face was so red that it could make a tomato jealous. And I'm pretty sure tomatoes don't get jealous.

Silena led the way into the restaurant. A Dionysus kid showed us our table and we sat down.

The place wasn't very classy. It's not small though. The lighting was dim, like a café or something. Cafés have dim lighting, right? I've never been in the outside world very much, even if I can shadow travel. Anyways, I ordered a small chocolate cake.

"Make that two," Thalia corrected.

"I just want some ice tea, please," Silena told the waiter, as he scribbled down our orders.

"Is there a menu or something?" Percy wondered.

"It's in front of you, on the table," Annabeth rolled her eyes.

"Oh. Oh! I knew that," Percy laughed nervously. "You have to pay?"

"Yes we do," I answered. "I'll pay for you if it's not too expensive."

"Ooh! Then can I have a hamburger and coke? Blue coke? Please?"

"Blue coke?" I questioned. I shook my head. "Alright, one blue coke," I told the waiter.

"I'll pay for you, Anna. I've got some drachmas on me," Thalia smiled.

"Hm…Is a strawberry milkshake okay?" Annabeth asked.

"Perfectly fine! On strawberry milkshake then! And throw in some fries. Lots of it," Thalia fist pumped the air.

Annabeth chuckled. "Thanks."

We talked about ourselves as we waited for our food and drinks. I learned that Annabeth had a cruel family who treated her poorly, like a servant before she ran away. I don't know much about Percy, except for the fact that he loves his mom a lot. I also found out that they met each other at a ball, and decided to run off together. Sounds like a romance novel.

Thalia on the other hand, joined the hunters because of immortality. She joined last year. So she's a year older than me…but she's still fifteen. She talked a lot about some of her adventures of beating up the Hydra over thousands of times and squishing hellhounds as if they were ants. I felt sorry for the hellhounds though.

Silena talked about shopping, clothes, make-up, Beckendorf, and how long the waiter was taking on our order. The new thing I learned about her today was that she was impatient. Like, _really _impatient. She was fuming, and you could practically see the smoke coming out of her ears.

The waiter quickly swooped over and gave us our food and drinks. Percy and I basically swallowed our food, and he slurped his coke real loudly, trying to aggravate Thalia. Annabeth rolled her eyes, but smiled at him. Thalia plugged her ears with her fingers, and Silena was shouting at him to shut up. It seems to affect Silena more than Thalia.

"Alright!" Thalia clapped her hands together. "I got to go see Artemis. She should be at the Big House. I'll see you guys later!"

I felt a pang of disappointment but decided to let it go. "See you later, Thals," I said.

"Bye, Pinecone Face!" Percy called out to her.

"Bye!" Silena and Annabeth shouted in unison.

"Next stop, Half-Blood School!" Silena said with determination.

"Well, I should go back to the graveyard," I said. Yes, I'm trying to avoid school.

"Oh no you don't," Silena glowered at me. "You're going to follow us like a baby hellhound, got that Di Angelo?"

"Y-Yes!" I answered. You don't want to mess with her bad side…

"What's fun about school?" Percy wondered.

"Oh, you'll see…" Silena smiled mischievously. "Don't worry, school starts tomorrow. Get there by eight in the morning from Monday to Fridays. It'll be fun. We should finish the tour soon. There's a lot more to show you!"

"Oh joy," Annabeth muttered.

* * *

**AH !**

**I'm so evil. I haven't updated in a long time :D**

**Well, here it is. It's long, I guess. **

**Kind of.**

**Eh, longer than the other chapters. I think.**

**I don't bother to check.**

**Anyways, It's MARCH BREAK!**

**I'm probably going to update soon again.**

**PROBABLY.**

**There's a chance I might get lazy and read other fan fictions instead of working on my own ;D**

**Hey! Don't blame me! There are A LOT of awesome authors out there! :D**

**Anyways, I ate all my animal crackers and now Cocoberrii is angry.**

**Animal Crackers were tasty D:**

**You're never too old for an animal cracker!**

**I love the elephant ones :D**

**I always feel like a kindergartener whenever I eat them. **

**Well, nothing much to add here. I think I got sick again. Right after I felt better too from the one before =3=**

**I'm sneezing a lot. **

**Yeah, I think I'm sick. I just sneezed as I typed this.**

**It's the best way to celebrate the March Break! :D**

**pffft. I sneezed again. Oh! I'm gonna make you all sick by sneezing through the screen! AH HAHAHA! I'm so evil. Wait... ACHOOOOOOOO!**

**Are you sick yet?**

**(I'm an evil author ;D)**

**And sorry for not updating early. (I can be nice too :3)**

**I don't like piled homework, trust me. And some fan fictions were too addicting. And _somebody_ (-cough- Cocoberrii -cough-) keeps distracting me because of MSN chat.**

**And I've been working a bit on Fake Marriage too.**

**Oh, and I've though about a whole new bunch of wacky fan fiction ideas for PJO.**

**I'm so awesome :D**

**Please Review, Review, Review! Tell me what you think! Flames aloud! **

**And make sure you add, "C-Nuggets N.L is super awesome." :D**

**PS. Cocoberrii, would you stop asking for previews already?**


	6. Chapter 6: Luke Castellan

**Disclaimer: I am too awesome to be Rick Riordan. I'm special. :D**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Six**

The four of them, Nico, Silena, Percy and Annabeth all headed towards the school. The school was _huge_. There was an arena for sword practice, a place for archery, a large swimming pool, a park, a volleyball court, a library, _everything_.

Percy and Annabeth gaped at the sight.

"THERE'S A SWIMMING POOL!" Percy jumped with joy.

"Oh my gods!" Annabeth said in awe. "I've never expected it to be like this."

Nico laughed. "You two act like you've never been in school before!"

The happy and excited expressions on their face disappeared. Annabeth's and Percy's face darkened.

"Ha-ha, yeah…" Percy laughed humorlessly.

"Good job, Nico," Silena hissed. "You ruined their happy mood."

"What? What'd I do?" Nico whined.

"Nothing, don't worry about it," Annabeth faked a smile.

"Whoa, wait. You two never went to school before?" Nico asked.

"I told you I was held a servant where I was from," Annabeth sighed. "I never left home."

"Then what about you?" Nico tried to pry the answer out of Percy.

"Kind of the opposite," Percy shrugged his shoulders.

"What's the opposite?" Silena joined in with curiosity.

Percy looked a tad bit uncomfortable with the question.

"Infer," Annabeth said, trying to save his butt.

Silena and Nico pouted. "No," they said stubbornly. They act like five year olds. How mature. Note my sarcasm.

Percy sighed and gave in. "I was the 'special boy'. I was homeschooled. But I skipped classes since the teacher didn't really care if I learned anything or not," Percy explained with air quotes.

"The 'special boy'?" Silena wondered.

"Uh, yeah," Percy nodded.

"Why were you special?" Nico asked.

"Son of Poseidon. His mom was overprotective," Annabeth answered for Percy. It was a small _part _of the truth.

"Oh. So you were rich?" Silena wondered.

"Who said I was rich?" Percy tried to counter.

"Well, you said 'teacher'. So your mom hired someone, right?" says Nico.

"Er…Yeah, I was rich," Percy replied.

"You're still hiding something…" Nico said skeptically.

"What are you hiding, Percy?" Silena smiled innocently.

"Uh, no I'm not. I'm not hiding anything at all," Percy scratched the back of his neck nervously with his eyebrows scrunched together.

_Cute_, Annabeth thought to herself, and then mentally slapped herself. _Stupid Poseidon boy. You're not supposed to be cute. I can't like you. Do I? Ugrh! I hate Percy, I hate Percy, I hate Percy… Eek! He's looking at me! Look away, look away…_

"Annabeth? Is something wrong?" Percy wondered, tilting his head.

"No! Uh, I mean, not really. I'm fine," Annabeth reassured as her face reddened into a darker shade of red.

"But–," Percy started.

"Percy? Are you trying to dodge my question?" Silena asked.

"Huh? What question?" Percy says stupidly. "Oh. That question. Um, well, I was a prince?"

Revenge. Sweet, sweet revenge. It was their turn to choke on air.

"_Prince_? You're kidding, right?" Nico coughed.

"Oh my gods! _You're _the prince of Atlantis?" Silena squealed. "I can't believe I never noticed!"

Percy shuffled his feet uncomfortably. "Er, shouldn't we continue with the tour?"

Annabeth instantly detected his uneasiness. "Yeah, let's get this over with first," she agreed.

"Oh, oh! We should! There's this party at the Apollo's district this evening! There's food and everything! We _can't _be late! There's going to be music and dancing; it's going to be _so _much fun!" Silena clapped her hands with joy.

"Um, that's…great?" Percy commented.

"Yeah, we should get going," Nico coughed for attention.

"Right…" Annabeth agreed, a bit freaked out by Silena's excitement for the party. She'll probably never get used to it. "It", referring to the…what's the word? Girliness. Is that how you spell it? Never mind. Please read on.

"Yeah, well, this is the school," Nico introduced it to them. Blunt. Straightforward. Nico-like.

"Um, is that it? Aren't we going to go inside?" Annabeth wondered.

"Actually, we can't really go inside the school; we can only enter during school days. But we can visit places like the library or the pool for example. Just not in the classes," Silena explained to them.

"Can we go to the pool?" Percy begged. _And I bet Annabeth will look great in a swim suit…,_ thought Percy.

"The library sounds more fun," Annabeth argued.

"Oh please, you know I'm not a fan of books," Percy pouted.

"The water is your _dad's _territory. And my mom is a rival of Poseidon. There's no way I'm going into a swimming pool," Annabeth crossed her arms.

Percy glared at her for a while then his eyes widened in realization. "You can't swim," he stated.

**Annabeth's POV**

Was it that obvious? Ugh, if a Seaweed Brain like him can figure it out, of course it's obvious.

"So what if I can't swim?" I shot at him.

He just stood there blinking at me with a stupid expression on his face like an idiot.

"Go ahead. Humiliate me," I sighed, getting ready to be bombed with insults.

"Want me to teach you?" Percy offered.

"Shut up Seaweed – Wait, what?" I asked.

"Want me to teach you?" he repeated.

"No."

"What? Why not?" He whined.

_Because of my pride. I don't need anybody teaching me anything. I'm the daughter of _Athena_, the goddess of _wisdom_. Learning from the son of _Poseidon_? Nuh-uh_, I answered truthfully in my mind. "Poseidon's domain. I'm not going."

"Aww, please?" he pleaded. "It'll be fun!"

"Can you hurry up and pick where you want to go? I'm sick of standing here," Nico complained.

"Shut up, Nico," Silena rolled her eyes.

"I might as well just leave," Nico countered.

"What? Don't go!" Silena exclaimed.

"Why?" Nico demanded.

"Because Thalia's going to come back later," Silena answered.

"Didn't she go see Artemis?" I questioned.

"Oh, well, I may have had a quick chat with her before you two came along," she fiddled with her fingers.

"What'd Artemis say?" Nico blurted out quickly.

"She said Hera had ordered her and Apollo to have some quality family time. She didn't seem too happy about it, but she had no choice and needed to leave her hunters somewhere. So I suggested her to let the hunters stay at Town Half-Blood," Silena answered.

"So…Thalia's staying?" Percy blinked.

"That's right! That's why Artemis called for her. She wanted to tell her to gather the rest of the hunters and stay for the rest of the summer!" Silena giggled.

"So…Thalia's staying?" Nico blinked.

"Yes!" she sighed, exasperated.

I grinned. "That's great! Um, and about that party thing earlier? Do we have to go?" I hoped not.

"You don't but I'm going to drag you with me anyways," she smiled.

Oh no. Oh gods no.

"If Annabeth doesn't want to go to the swimming pool, can we go sparring at the arena?" Percy asked excitedly.

"Shouldn't we wait for Thalia first?" Nico suggested.

"She needs to pick up her hunters, doesn't she?" I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, but…She might be here any second, you know?" he told her.

"HURRY UP!" Silena boomed. It freaked us all out. I mean, I will _never _upset Aphrodite and her children again. They can be pretty intimidating at times like this. "I need to get ready for the party! I need to change into a dress and _everything_."

"Uh, it's in the afternoon. It doesn't take that long to change, does it?" says Percy.

"Not if you want to look _pretty_," Silena huffed.

"Then go. I'll give them the rest of the tour," Nico offered.

"Thank you! See you later! Oh, and Annie? Come to my house once the tour's over! I need to dress you up for the party! Bye-bye!" And with that, she dashed off to the Aphrodite district.

"So I'm a Barbie doll now?" I groaned.

"Aw, it's not like it'll be _that _bad," Percy assured me.

"Actually, it kind of is," Nico nodded his head.

"Thanks, Nico," I said, my voice oozing with sarcasm.

"No problem."

I think he took that seriously. Does this guy have any sense of humor?

"Sword Fighting?" Percy hoped.

"Sure, let's go," Nico yawned.

An evil glint appeared in Percy's eyes. "Race you?" he asked me.

"Oh, you're on!" I shouted at him, already running ahead to the arena.

"Cheater!" Percy called out behind me.

I just laughed and enjoyed the cool breeze running through my hair as I sprinted away. Percy (surprisingly) caught up with me.

"I'm winning this race!" Percy said with determination.

"Sure you are," I smirked.

In my success, I won. Bet that Seaweed Brain! Sucker! Ha! Er, anyways, I got to the arena before Percy.

"I won, I won!" I rubbed it in his face.

"Whatever. Where's Nico?" Percy changed the subject.

"Over here," said a voice. We flinched, surprised by how fast he got here. "Shadow travel," he explained in two words.

"Ooh! That's so cool! Can I do something like that too?" Percy awed.

"I don't know. I'm a child of Hades, not Poseidon," he shrugged in reply.

"Do we choose a weapon?" I asked. I'm no Big Three child, so this conversation has nothing to do with me. I just want to get to the fun part where I get to beat up Percy with weapons. Ah, what glorious fun.

"Over there," Nico pointed over at a wooden shack surrounded by weapon racks. "You can check out some inside too."

Percy and I jogged to the direction where Nico had pointed. There was a whole bunch of weapons to choose from. I picked up a few swords, spears, and bows, but all of them felt too...I don't know; it's just not me. The swords and everything are a bit heavier, and I wasn't used to it. I crept into the shed, and decided to search there. I heard Percy follow me from behind. I ignored him and concentrated on finding the perfect weapon suitable for me. I spotted a dagger lying on the ground, and I hesitantly picked it up. It wasn't perfect, but it felt better than the other weapons. I heard a loud _CLANG_ coming from the other side of the shack.

"Ow!" I heard a yelp. I identified the voice as Percy's.

"Need help, Seaweed Brain?" I called out.

"I'm fine; I'm fine!" he reassured.

I shook my head at his clumsiness and strode out of the shed and Nico stood there with two chest plates. He tossed one to me and I put it on.

"Found a weapon?" he asked.

"Yeah," I nodded.

"Where?" he frowned.

I showed him the dagger.

"Oh. Wait – that's just a dagger. Don't you want to choose something more deadly to defeat Percy?"

"Yeah, but if I beat with this dagger, it'll be something to laugh about," I smirked.

Nico laughed. "That'd be really fun to watch."

Percy stumbled out of the shed with a long sword. "It still feels a bit heavy," I heard him mutter to himself. "Okay! I'm ready!" he called out with determination.

Nico passed him his chest plate. "Put that on," he demanded. Once Percy did, Nico went over the rules. "No killing, try your best not to injure your opponent, and to win, you must knock down whoever you're versing."

"Got it," I nodded my head.

"Wait, where's your weapon?" Percy asked me.

"Here," I waved the dagger in front of his face.

Percy laughed. "Then I'm going to shred you into little pieces of owl tofu."

"Owl tofu? Really?" I scoffed. "Then I'm going to turn you into sushi. Or do you prefer roasted ponies?"

"Ooh! Burn!" Nico shouted. Percy shot him a quick glare. "Sorry," he murmured. "Start sparring."

I charged at Percy and he blocked my knife with his sword. Our blades clashed together several times before I knocked his sword out of his hands. I caught his sword in midair and shoved Percy to the ground, pointing his sword to his chest. I smirked.

"I win," I declared.

"That was fast," Nico mused to himself. "Hey Perce! You got beat by a girl! With a knife!" he announced.

"Shut up," Percy grumbled. "Rematch!"

"Are you sure you're up for it? Aren't you afraid of being squished into plankton?"

"Oh ha-ha. Hilarious," Percy rolled his eyes.

I held out my hand to help him up. When he took it, I felt a spark of electricity run through my body. I did my best to ignore it. It doesn't mean anything, right? He's just a Poseidon boy.

I hauled him up and Nico yawned. "Well, I'll just show you the general store first. That place is important. Suck up to the manager, and you might be able to get some free stuff. You visited the forges, right?"

We nodded our heads.

"Alright, then we'll head over to the flower shop, then the strawberry field, the beach, and the canoe lake and harbor. We could visit the farms too and the Pegasus stable. The Apollo kids like spending their time at the park or the archery, which is here in the arena. They also help out at the Big House to heal any injuries. The arena is also where the Ares kids hang out. If not, like right now, they're probably out picking on some other people."

"How friendly," Percy muttered, causing me to smirk.

"The Dionysus and Demeter districts spend their time over on the strawberry field and some of them work in the flower shop. The satyrs help out there too, and they also tend the farms. Hephaestus kids work over at the forges, obviously. If you want to search for the Aphrodite children, most of them work at the fashion section of the general store. The place is huge. Hermes kids work over at the general store too, so watch your pockets when we enter that place," Nico warned us. Nico exhaled loudly. "I've never talked this much before."

Percy chuckled and patted his back. "Now you do."

"Ha-ha."

I shook my head and smiled at Percy's childish and immature personality. We took off the chest plates and put away our weapons and started walking to the general store.

The general store was painted red and was certainly huge. We walked inside and the door made a ringing sound. Inside was enormous. There was bright lighting, and shelves chucked with snacks and racks buried in clothes.

"Whoa…" Percy managed.

"Oh, you remember Chris and the Stolls, right? They work here. Luke's the store manager. He's cool," says Nico.

As if right on cue, a guy popped out to greet us. "Hey! These people new?" says the mysterious blonde dude. He had blue eyes and a scar traced down the bottom of his left eye and down to his chin. He seemed nice and looked handsome, but the scar was kind of scary.

"Yeah," Nico answered. "This is Annabeth, and that over there's Percy. Percy, Annabeth, this is Luke Castellan."

"Annabeth, huh?" Luke said, staring at me. I instantly felt uncomfortable.

"Er, yes…" I replied cautiously.

"And I'm Percy," he told Luke monotonously with his fists rolled into a ball. You could sense the anger wavering in his voice.

"It's nice to meet you, Annie and Perce," Luke smirked at Percy.

I flinched at him calling me Annie. I seriously hated that name. I mean, Silena calls me that too, but I find it alright. I don't of approve anyone else to address me as _Annie_. Ugh. But Percy can be an exception…since he's my best friend and all, I mean.

An awkward silence filled the air. And Nico just had to announce it.

"Awkward," Nico stated.

"Wonderful. Can we leave?" I hoped.

"Hades no! Um, no offense Dad," Nico whispered to the floor. Psh, Weirdo. "We should look around first. This place sells a lot of amazing things!"

"That's right!" Luke agreed. "I'll show you around if you'd like, Annabeth."

"We'd like that," I answered carefully with my choice of words. Lies, lies, lies.

"Oh. I meant by just the two of us. You know, so we can get to know each other more," Luke smiled.

"Um, but I'd like to stay with Percy," I said. I instantly blushed. _Seriously? Why did I say that?_

"Oh. He's your boyfriend?" Luke glowered at Percy.

"Huh? No! I mean, he's not. Percy isn't my boyfriend," I shook my head furiously, waving my hands in the air. Saying that just made me feel a bit disappointed that I'm not his boyfriend. _But he can't be my boyfriend. He's the son of Poseidon. I can't feel like that towards Percy. Hades, I'm not even supposed to be his friend! It's already worse enough that it is! Being his girlfriend will just make the situation worse. Oh gods, I'm rambling._

Luke's face brightened. "Really? You want to hang out sometime?"

"Uh, I have, you know, other stuff to do. I'm busy most of the times…" I stuttered, trying to find an excuse. He seemed really nice, but I just don't…eh, _like_ him, if you know what I mean.

"Oh…Well, maybe next time?"

"Sure, I guess. Maybe."

"Great."

"Yeah…"

"Awkward," Nico announced again.

"We could browse around," Percy told me.

I smiled. "Yeah, but we have other places to visit first," I reminded him.

"Oh right…" Percy muttered, his mind going into Percy-Land.

"Maybe next time," Luke suggested.

"Maybe," I replied.

We walked out – okay, so maybe I sped-walked out the store. Luke freaked me out a bit. I mean, he _likes _me? I turned around to find Luke in one of the windows, and saw him checking out an Aphrodite chick looking through the section of pink tops. Cue my shuddering. _Me and Luke? So not going to happen. Like dating Percy isn't going to happen. You know, since he's the son of Poseidon, and we're just friends, right? Right. Why do I keep telling myself that? I know that Percy's my friend. So I can't date him. Why am I telling myself _that_? I know I can't date him. Oh gods, just shut up, Annabeth._

"Wise Girl? Are you deep in thoughts again? I swear, I can almost literally see those gears turning in that head of yours," says Percy.

I laughed. "Yes, I was thinking."

"Thinking of what?"

I blushed. What lie should I tell him? That I was thinking of when Thalia might arrive? Oh! That's a good one!

"I see you thinking again," Percy said with a smug looking smile.

"Oh, will you two just stop flirting?" Nico complained.

Our faces reddened. "We weren't flirting, Nico," Percy dodged.

"Sure, sure," he waved off his comment.

"Where to?" I asked, trying my very best to change the subject. Judging by Percy's face, he could tell what I was trying to do and just nodded in approval.

"Uh, let's see. We still need to go to the flower shop, and the beach, the Canoe Lake and harbor are close together, and the farms and Pegasus stable. We don't need to go to the library, the pool or the park, right? You know where that is. It's by the school," says Nico. "Where do you want to go first?"

I looked over at Percy and raised an eyebrow. "Where do you want to go first?"

"Hm…I was thinking of the Pegasus stable," he answered.

"Of course. Poseidon and ponies. How could I forget?" Nico grumbled.

"Hey! Horses are cool!" Percy defended.

I laughed. "Sure, Percy. You could look at it that way."

Percy pouted and crossed his arms like a six year old. I giggled at how funny he looked. Oh my gods, _giggled_? THE Annabeth Chase does _not _giggle. There's something mentally wrong with me.

"We're still going to the Pegasus, right?" says Percy.

"Yes, wittle' Seaweed Brain. We're going to the stable," I laughed, pinching his cheeks.

"Don't mock me."

* * *

**I'm SO sorry I haven't written in a long time! Dx**

**Oh, and there was this spider in my bathroom, and I was screaming like crazy :D**

**Did I mention my phobia of spiders? And bees? And wasps? (I got stung by one of those honey-making creatures on my freaking EYELID. Tisk) And butterflies? And huge hairy moths? I saw one of those on my garden door once. -shudder-**

**Anyways, I did what most spider-freaked-out-girls would do and ran to my daddy :D**

**And he said something along the lines of: "You're old enough to kill it yourself."**

**So I ran to my mommy :D**

**Then she followed me to the washroom, and asked where it was, and when I spotted it, I ran out screaming.**

**...Maybe a daughter of Athena suits me more. But I like dead things. They're fun to poke at with a stick. **

**But the good news is that it's dead now. My mom flushed it down the toilet before I could poke it with something.**

**At least I'm not like my sister who squishes it with whatever's near her. And that includes a broom. And a trash can. And my baby brother. She didn't _try _it, but I'm sure she would if she sees a bug.**

**She's a crazy girl. Hm...Reminds me of Clarisse, but I'm more scarier than her :D**

**Hey, Have you noticed that my author's notes are so freaking long? ****I'm so awesome :3**

**And I went to the dentist today! Er, dentist/orthodontist. **

**Oh! Oh! This this the chapter with the most words :D (so far)**

**And, and, I drank root beer and ate pizza. Mmm... I love making my readers jealous :D**

**It's just so much fun.**

**I'm so proud of myself. Over 4000 words (Including all this junk) ;D**

**But I didn't bother editing it :3**

**Please leave a review! Tell me what you think :)**


	7. Chapter 7: Katie Gardner

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians. I own this fan fiction. Be proud.**

**ALERT: Please read An Extraordinary Cinderella Story if you haven't already! It's a prequel to Town Half-Blood :D**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Seven**

"Um, how do we ride this thing?" Annabeth asked Nico.

Before Nico could answer her, Percy hoped onto the closest Pegasus in the flock of pegasi, smiling. He waved at Annabeth. "Hey! Wise Girl! Check this out!" he hollered. Percy gave the flying creature a small kick and it started to flap it wings. Not long, Percy was riding a Pegasus, flying in the sky.

"Horse-freak!" Nico shouted at him. "You big show off!"

"So how _do _you ride a Pegasus?" Annabeth asked again, ignoring Nico's comment to Percy.

"I don't know."

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Percy! Get down here and help me! Death-Breath doesn't know how to ride a pegasi!"

Percy landed the white mythical creature and jogged up to Annabeth, laughing at Nico. Nico scowled.

"Those horses hate me!" he protested. "I'm never getting on one of those things."

"Aw, you're boring, Nico," says Percy. "I'm sure they just _love_ you!"

"But they smell bad too!" Nico continued to protest.

"Whatever," Percy chuckled. Percy then turned to Annabeth with a lopsided grin.

**Percy's POV**

"Which one do you want to ride on?" I asked her.

"Um…I don't know. Any is fine," Annabeth replied.

I walked up one of the Pegasus and patted its head. It was white like all the other Pegasi.

"_My lord,_" he greeted.

"Can you give Annabeth a ride?" I whispered to it.

The horse neighed, "_But_ _my lord, she a daughter of _Athena_!_ _Why are you with her? Your father would be disappointed._"

"So?"

"Percy? Are you talking to it?" Annabeth asked from behind me, tilting her head.

"Yeah, this one likes to lecture me. But don't worry. Come on, we'll find another," I said, grabbing her hand and leading her to another Pegasus.

"Seriously? A Pegasus lecturing you? Why am I not surprised?" Annabeth stifled a laugh.

"Eh. I'm not _that _dumb – Hey! I'm not dumb at all!" I complained.

"Hey, Percy?" Nico yelled from behind. I turned around to find him hiding in a shadow of a tree a bit far away from here. About twenty Pegasi was surrounding him, sniffing at Nico. He must smell weird.

"I told you they love you!" I smirked. Oh, how much I just love my jokes.

"That's not funny!"

"It looks like the Pegasi aren't the only ones that smell bad!"

"Shut up!"

"Nico doesn't smell bad," Annabeth started.

"Thank you!" Nico called out.

"If he smells so bad, the Pegasi wouldn't be humping him," Annabeth concluded, laughing along with me.

"HEY! I HEARD THAT!"

"Good! It's meant to be heard!" Annabeth shouted. Who knew she had a sense of humor?

"Can we leave? Please? This was actually what I meant by them hating me. GET THEM OFF!"

"Aw, but we just got here!" I whined.

"At least get those Pegasi away from Nico," Annabeth rolled her eyes. "No more jokes now."

I smirked. "Nah, jokes are fun. Plus, this'll be fun to watch. You know anywhere close to get binoculars?"

Annabeth smacked my arm. "Seriously, Seaweed Brain?" she chuckled.

"I was kidding! I'll get them to leave," I laughed. "Later."

"Now, Seaweed Brain," she commanded, trying to hold in a smile.

"Meanie," I fake pouted.

Annabeth smiled and I couldn't help but smile as well. Her smile's contagious. I wonder…does she consider me as a friend too? I hope so. I mean, we've argued a lot because of the Poseidon and Athena rivalry. But now we seemed to be getting along much easily.

"Go," she pushed me towards Nico and the herd of Pegasi.

"Fine, fine," I sighed.

I walked towards Nico and I saw him standing with his eyes closed, shuddering as the Pegasi sniffed him. One even tried to lick him, but the expression on its face made it look like Nico tasted horrible, and then galloped away. Not to self: don't lick Nico. Not that I want to. That's just gross.

"Hey," I called out to the horses with wings. They turned their heads towards me. "Is it alright if you leave Death Boy alone now?"

"_No!_" they all chanted, and continued to nibble on his aviator jacket.

"That didn't go so well," I mumbled.

"Help!" Nico shouted. "Percy! Ow! That's my arm!"

"I'll get you sugar cubes," I promised the Pegasi.

Their heads flicked to my direction again. "_Sugar cubes?_" they asked.

"Yes, sugar cubes," I nodded my head.

"_How much?_" asked one of them.

"I don't know. As much as I could get, maybe."

"You shouldn't give them too much sugar cubes, Seaweed Brain. It's not exactly 'healthy' for them," says Annabeth, who appeared beside me.

I shrugged, "Eh." Annabeth rolled her eyes…again. Seriously, I'm not that annoying am I?

"Can we just leave?" Nico hoped.

"But Annabeth didn't get to ride on one yet!" I complained. And I really didn't get to have much fun myself.

"Its fine, Percy," Annabeth reassured. "We still have a few more places to go, _plus _we've got a party to attend to."

"Are the parties here any fun?" I questioned. The parties my mom throws are classy and boring. It's the disadvantage of being a prince.

"The best," Nico answered. "Especially the Apollo's district. Can we– Ow! Stupid pony! – Can we leave now?"

"Fine," I huffed.

This is no fun. I rode on a Pegasus once for less than three minutes, only had one quick spar with Annabeth and _lost_, and we couldn't go to the swimming pool, and had to enter a sweating hot forge and a creepy graveyard. We even met that _Luke _guy. I hate him. I don't why even though I don't know him that much, but I hate him. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate.

"Help! I'm surrounded!" Nico gagged at the smell of horse dung. Not a pretty scent.

I shooed away the Pegasi and Nico grunted. "Took you long enough."

"You're welcome," I smiled.

"Flower shop next," Annabeth says.

"Then it's time to meet Travis' girlfriend," Nico said.

"Travis Stoll?" I asked.

"That's right. Her name's Katie Gardner. She's Demeter's daughter."

We silently walked to the flower shop, which happens to be not so far away from the Pegasi stable. It was a small store, painted green with a blue roof. Flowers surrounded the store and it smells…like flowers, obviously.

"There're bees kept at the back of the store for honey. Don't get too close. The Stoll brothers tried to prank this shop, and they ran out with a swarm of bees after them," Nico warned us. Then he yawned. "I need a nap," he mumbled to himself.

Just then, a girl in an orange sundress with a straw hat came walking out of the small shop. She saw us and gave a warm smile.

"I haven't seen you around before," she says, walking up to us. "You're new?"

"Yeah, this is Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase. They're cool people. I'm giving them a tour, although Silena was supposed to be the one leading it. She had to 'dress up' for this evening's crazy party," Nico yawned again.

Is he tired? Maybe he's just exhausted from that Pegasi incident.

"It's nice to meet you," I grinned.

"It's nice to meet you too," Katie beamed.

Annabeth just smiled and nodded politely at Katie.

"This place isn't very popular," Katie groaned. "It's near the strawberry field, not the districts, so it's not as busy as the general store. Stupid Luke…"

"You hate Luke?" I asked without a second thought.

"Oh, yeah. He likes to ruin my business since I kept refusing to go out with him. He even asked me when I'm dating Travis!" Katie exclaimed. "Sorry, I'm talking about boring stuff, aren't I?"

"No, I kind of dislike him too," I agreed.

"What? Luke's pretty cool though. He throws awesome parties, better than Mary's –," Nico started.

"_Mary _throws better parties than Luke," Katie protested.

"Oh come on, Luke's popular and awesome. You just don't want to admit it because he has better business than you do at this…_place_," Nico says in distaste.

Katie rolled her eyes. "Whatever. It's my opinion, and you keep yours."

I coughed for attention. "Well, I guess we should get going. Strawberry farm, right?" I asked Nico.

"Yeah, it's closest."

"I can show you around," Katie volunteered.

"That'll be great," Annabeth spoke. Huh. She was so quiet the entire time that I hardly noticed her beside me. I wonder what's wrong. Annabeth's _never _this quiet, unless she's thinking or mad about something. Annabeth's not shy in front of strangers either.

"Great! I'll show you the way," Katie says enthusiastically.

"Ugh. You know what? How about you give them the rest of the tour? They need to go to the beach, harbor, lake, field and farms left. I'm exhausted. I'll see Thalia at the party maybe…" Nico muttered the last part to himself.

"Fine, have fun with your nap, Nico," says Katie.

Nico yawned and stepped into the shadow of the flower shop. "See you at the party," he yawned again. Then he got swallowed by darkness.

"Uh…Is that supposed to be shadow travel?" I ask.

"Yeah, don't let it freak you out," Katie sighed. "He's a show off."

"Like you," Annabeth commented, looking at me. Katie and Annabeth shared a laugh.

"I'm not a show off," I argued as soon as they calmed down.

"Sure, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth shook her head.

I rolled my eyes and we walked down a small hill behind the flower shop and continued to stride straight ahead.

"So you're a florist?" Annabeth questioned Katie.

"Yeah, but I don't get many customers since Luke sells those horrid fake flowers. The Aphrodite children used to come to my place. Now they go to Luke's because the flowers are plastic and don't wither. I absolutely _hate _fake flowers. It's so stupid," Katie rambled.

The girls kept going on and on about flowers and whatnot, so I drifted into a daydream as we walked.

_I was riding a black Pegasus, galloping around the long green fields. I spotted Annabeth in a beautiful sparkling grey sundress with a daisy stuck in her blond hair that was shining in the sunlight. She was barefoot under a tree, reading a huge thick book. She looked up at me and smiled, and I gave her my signature lopsided grin._

_I got the Pegasus to gallop towards her._

"_Hey," I grinned._

"_Hey, Seaweed Brain," she smiled that beautiful smile of hers._

"_I see you're reading again. What's so interesting about books anyways?" _

"_Well, if you'd taken the time to read it, you might know."_

"_I'll pass," I chuckled. "Reading is more of your thing. Want to go for a ride?"_

"_I'm almost done, Seaweed Brain," she chuckled along with me._

_I pouted. "Aw, please? It'll be just a quick ride. You'll be back to reading in no time."_

_Annabeth looked up at me with a smile and sighed. She closed she book and got up. "Fine. But it has to be a quick one, got it?"_

"_Got it," I agreed._

_I held out my hand and she took it. I hauled her up behind me. Annabeth wrapped her arms around my waist and rested her chin on my shoulder, still smiling. I got the Pegasus to run, and the cool breeze ran through our hair as we laughed. We galloped a few circuits around the large field before we stopped by the tree Annabeth was before. _

_I hopped off the black Pegasus and held out my hand to her again. She took it and I helped her off._

"_That was fun," she chuckled._

"_Too bad it was so short," I complained._

"_I need to finish my reading, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth pointed out._

"_Wise Girl," I smirked._

_Annabeth rolled her eyes at me like usual. She sat back down and picked up her book to open up her book. I followed and sat beside her, snaking my arm around her waist. She looked up at me and raised an eyebrow. I grinned widely as our eyes connected. I gently closed her book with our eyes still lost in each other's. I started to lean in and – _

"SEAWEED BRAIN!" Annabeth yelled at the top of her lungs, bringing me back to Earth.

"What? Huh?" I blinked.

"You're drooling. What exactly were you thinking about?" she huffed.

"More like fantasizing about," Katie giggled beside her.

"I uh…" was the best thing I could think of. I touched the bottom of my lip to realize I was drooling, and quickly wiped it off. "Nothing."

Annabeth sighed dramatically. "We're here."

I took a lot around us and found that we were surrounded my patches of strawberries.

"Oh…" I nodded my head in understanding.

"I swear, it's like you literally have kelp in your head," Annabeth shook her head.

"So who were you thinking about?" Katie asked me, interested in my daydream.

"Uh…I, uh…"

"Who's the lucky girl?" she grinned.

I thought she was a Demeter's girl, not an Aphrodite's. Stop trying to get involve with my love life! Not that I love Annabeth or anything. We're just friends. We _are_ friends, right?

"Um, uh…err…"

"You have someone you like?" Annabeth wondered.

"Um…well, I…uh…"

"He has someone he likes," Katie concluded.

"Who?" Annabeth demanded, her eyes narrowing at my direction. I named this glare, TAG. It stands for The Annabeth Glare. Genius, right? But trust me, it's very terrifying.

"Uh…I don't – I don't like anyone…" I lied. Lied? I mean, I mean…I _said_. Yeah. 'Cause Annabeth's a friend? See? You get my point? You know, it's just a slip of the tongue. Yeah. Stop staring at me like that. Who are you? Aphrodite? Stop it! I don't like _like _her! We're _friends_.

"Percy, you're stuttering," Annabeth pointed out.

"Oh, don't worry. Let him keep his little love life to himself. Although, I kind of got the hint of who she is," Katie says cheerfully.

"Whoa – WHAT? I don't – I _don't _like anyone! Not in _that _way!" I screeched. "Wait, you know who it is?"

"Cover blown," Annabeth growled.

"I don't like anyone!" I continued to protest. Although, I'm pretty sure I'm dead meat now. It's like trying even though you know it's impossible. But, I _don't _like anyone, okay? I _don't_.

Annabeth turned to Katie and sweetly asked, "So who is this girl?"

"Hm…well, I'm sure Percy wouldn't want me to tell you that. You're going to have to pry out _that _answer out of him, not me," Katie replied. I felt a wave of relief wash over me.

Annabeth turned back to me, glaring daggers. Relief? It disappeared. "So?" she tapped her foot on the ground impatiently, squishing some strawberries in the process.

"It's a secret?" I managed to squeak while Annabeth was scaring the life out of me.

Annabeth huffed with her arms crossed and walked down the field of strawberries without a word.

"How long is she going to stay angry at me?" I wondered.

"Aw, don't worry. Maybe if you give her some flowers, she'll cheer up," Katie smiled.

"Where am I going to get that?" I sighed, exasperated.

"Uh, you're looking at a flower shop owner, Buddy," Katie rolled her eyes.

"Oh. Oh right! How much is for the flowers? Which do you think she'll like?" I rambled.

"I'll give you the flowers for free. I know how much you like her anyways," Katie shrugged.

"You do? Wait, I don't like _like _her!" I argued.

"You keep telling yourself that," I heard her mutter.

"We should follow Annabeth," I said worriedly. I mean, she's almost out of sight now.

"I agree. Don't worry, I'm _very _sure Annabeth feels the same way about you," Katie wiggled her eyebrows.

"Wha – No she doesn't! She only thinks of us as friends," I said sadly. Uh, I mean, happily. Yeah, happily. There's nothing to be sad about. Right? What's with all the "right?"s? I'm asking myself too much questions. Oh gods, this isn't normal.

"Oh right. The Athena and Poseidon rivalry. Maybe that's why she's in denial?" Katie murmured to herself again. Does she talk to herself a lot? Ooh. Another question. Athena must be messing with me for being friends with her daughter.

We continued to walk, and eventually caught up with Annabeth. But she won't talk to me. She's ignoring me as if I wasn't there. So I picked some strawberries while I eavesdropped – I mean overheard, Annabeth's and Katie's conversation.

"So, what do you think of Percy?" Katie started the conversation.

"Who?" Annabeth says stubbornly. She really hates my guts, doesn't she? Well, she is the daughter of Athena. She's told me before that she hates not knowing. I guess she hates that she doesn't know who I like. Not that I have one!

"You know, green eyes, black air, two arms and legs?" Katie asked.

"Oh, that Seaweed Brain." At least she not pretending not to know me, right?

"That's the pet name you gave him?" Katie smirked.

I blushed at the comment. It was more of an insult, right? Right? Like how my insult to her was Wise Girl? Um, is that even an insult? Oh Hades, Annabeth was right. I suck with names. I'm turning to Grover! Next thing I'll know, I'll become half donkey! Uh, I mean goat.

"It's not a pet name," Annabeth countered. I could've sworn I saw her face turn into a shade of light pink.

"It's a nickname still," Katie waved off what she had said.

"It doesn't mean it's a 'pet name'," Annabeth countered with air quotes.

"Okay, whatever," Katie shrugged.

We walked silently together for a while with Katie and Annabeth in front. I was far behind, but not too far, still in earshot. But Annabeth didn't seem to notice that. She probably thought I was daydreaming again.

"Can't you just tell me who he likes?" Annabeth pleaded.

"Why do you want to know?" Katie smirked.

"I'm a daughter of Athena. I can't live without knowing." See? I was right!

"There's another reason," Katie sang.

"What? No there isn't," she says stubbornly.

"Oh, but there is. You've met Silena? She's the leader of the Aphrodite district, and a good friend of mine. So I can tell."

"No wonder you're more like an Aphrodite girl," Annabeth muttered angrily under her breath.

Another awkward silence. For the next fifteen minutes. Oh thank gods we reached the farms.

"Grover!" Katie called out.

A scrawny kid with two little horns popped his head up and instantly spotted us.

"Katie, Perce, Annabeth!" Grover waved trotting towards us. Annabeth and I waved back.

"So you met them before?" Katie asked Grover.

"That's right!" Grover bleated.

"Well then. Did you guys know that this satyr is an enchilada and coffee addict?" Katie asked us with an innocent smile.

"I'm not addicted to that stuff!" Grover protested, waving his arms in the air.

"Mmhm," Katie nodded. "Sure," she says disbelievingly. "Anyways, over here has a bunch of farms were the satyrs live. The Demeter district is close to here." Kate gestured over a sign that pointed to her district. "Visit me anytime you want. My house is the one that's built in brown bricks and surrounded by blue and red flowers."

"Um, alright," I said, scarfing down on some of the strawberries I picked.

"Uh, where did you get those?" Grover asked me.

"The strawberry field. Why?"

"Um, you do realize that those strawberries are under the eye of Dionysus, right?"

"The Wine Dude?"

Grover turned from serious into a goat rolling on the ground laughing his head off. "That's a good one!"

"Mr. D is so going to kill you," Katie warned.

"So I'm going to be a bottle of merlot soon, aren't I?" I sighed, plopping another strawberry in my mouth.

"Wait, Dionysus is the god of wine. Why strawberries?" Annabeth asked.

"If it's grapes, Dionysus would make it into wine. He's been sent here for messing around with an off limits naiad while he was drunk. So basically, he can't grow grapes unless it's absolutely necessary," Grover explained with Katie nodding her head behind him.

"But he can still turn you into wine," Katie added.

"Wonderful. Then he's going to drink me?" I grunted.

"Well, he can't drink wine, so he drinks diet coke," Grover shrugged his shoulders.

"So he's going to turn me into diet coke?" I corrected myself as Annabeth stifled a laugh.

"Most likely," Grover said.

"That makes me feel a million times better," I said sarcastically.

"Don't worry. We won't tattle on you. Well, naiads who saw would, but we won't," Grover tried to brighten my spirit. So not working.

"Uh-huh," I said. "I feel _so _much better." You noticed my sarcasm, right? Good.

"Great!" says the oblivious Grover. "You done looking around?"

"The beach, lake, and harbor left." Katie says.

"Ooh…I'd join, but I'm not a water person, as you can see," says Grover looking down at his hairy legs. "I'll see you at the party though!" Grover's eyes lit up.

"Great! We'll see you later then!" Annabeth smiled at him. …She's still angry with me, isn't she?

"Next stop, district number three!" Katie fist pumped the air. That doesn't really seem like her style, but I guess she was trying to get Annabeth to cheer up from being mad at me.

"District number three?" Annabeth questioned.

"The Poseidon district. I'm going to show him his house and get the keys for him after. The water areas are closest to that district. You know why. I'll show you your place after. It's about three districts away from Percy's; number six," Katie explained.

"So…" I started. "Can we go swimming now?"

Annabeth smacked me at the back of my head. "Is that all you _ever _think about?" I smiled. She's talking to me! She not angry anymore! Well, slightly.

"Maybe," I replied, giving her my one and only lopsided grin. As always, she rolled her eyes with her famous smirk.

"Let's go; let's go!" Katie encouraged us. "See you later, Grover!"

"Bye!" Annabeth waved.

"See you, G-Man!" I grinned. Grover grinned back with a wave and a, "Bye, Perce!"

"Your place isn't so far," Katie told me as we walked away. "My district is number four, so yours is right next to mine."

I could've sworn I saw Annabeth scowl from the corner of my eye. I must be imagining things.

"Really? Great! I can't wait to start swimming!" I shouted excitedly giving a double fist pump into the air.

"Uh, Buddy? Swim suit?" Katie raised an eyebrow.

"So?" I said, not really understanding.

"If we're going swimming, we'll need a swimsuit," she explained.

"Oh…Oh! A swimsuit! So?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes with a sigh. "You're just going to jump in the water with your clothes on, aren't you?"

"You know me too well," I grinned widely. She smiled back.

"What about us?" Katie frowned.

"Hey, I'll dry you up. I'm the son of Poseidon," I said proudly, bragging about my cool Dad.

Annabeth looked over with an expression that says something like, "Are you sure we should?"

Katie shook her head. "You know what? I'll just watch. I don't trust you with your powers."

"Hey!" I protested, but the girls were laughing at me.

"I wouldn't either," Annabeth agreed.

"Fine be that way," I huffed, crossing my arms and acting like a teenage girl with an attitude.

Annabeth and Katie laughed at that. "Drama Queen," I heard Annabeth mutter, but I could hear her smile when she said that.

Ah…Swimming. I sure can't wait.

"Poseidon district first!" Katie demanded.

"Aw…" I pouted.

Annabeth laughed and patted my cheek. "We'll go to the beach later."

* * *

**I did it! I completed Chapter Seven! Whoo!  
The pile of homework was driving me nuts (as well as my siblings. Who likes their one-year old brother running to your closed shut bedroom door and banging on it while screaming his head off?)**

**I didn't edit this piece of work either!  
I must be so lazy :D**

**I'm drinking Lemon Iced Tea. Mmm, Brisk :D**

**KEEP YOUR EYES OUT FOR: an extra chapter of An Extraordinary Cinderella Story! (Chapter Eight)  
I'm thinking of adding one more chapter about Percy and Annabeth camping together :D**

**There's a dead squirrel on my street. It's been there for...what? Five or four months already?  
Decompose already! It's lying there dead on top of the sewer thingy D:**

**And for my dear readers, I'm so glad you're still with me even though I update like once a week now.  
Oh, if only it was summer...**

**Cocoberrii was irritating me about Taylor Swift. Pfft, she has an obsession but she won't admit it. She wants her in here. Or her song. Was it?  
Oh well. I'm going to put up a song from Taylor Swift for Mary's party. So shut up, wait, and don't complain, Cocoberrii. The party is LATER. **

**And, and, I'm going to put a guardian owl for the Athena's district. Like, like a pet :D  
****Named Cookie :3  
All credit goes to MewJollyRancher12. I'm gonna mention the name again on the next chapter maybe, when Cookie makes an appearance :D **

**Plus, plus, I'm thinking of putting up a quest~ **

**I swear, it's like my chapters are getting longer and longer. What's wrong with me?  
I have about five thousand words for chapter seven including the author's note.  
I think it's my author's note that's making it long. You think so too, don't you?**

**And special thanks to meeeethegr8 !  
I was having so much trouble with that stupid Error Type 2 thingy D:  
Thanks! **

**Anyways, please, please review!  
I seriously mean it.  
The more reviews, the most likely I'll update faster! I need motivation! :D **


	8. Chapter 8: Malcolm and Cookie

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians. If I did, why in the world would I write a **_**fan fiction **_**for my own series? I'm pretty sure Riordan doesn't have THAT much of an ego.**

**INTRODUCING: Another non-edited chapter!**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Eight**

"Here it is," Katie says proudly.

The three of them stood in awe, staring at the large beach house. The bricks were gray; shining in the sunlight as well as the sparkling green tiled roof top with a wooden patio that was painted white and blue like the shallow waters of the ocean. And it really was large. It's a huge difference from Silena's house. It's like a mansion. The place was three stories tall with small bushes and flowers such as lilies around it. Around them was obviously a beach. So it had that salty sea aroma around it. The crashing waves made a soothing and relaxing sound.

"So…The Poseidon District is on the beach?" Percy asked, admiring his new place, and loving every single detail of it.

"Yeah, but the beach further down is for public use. Poseidon kids get their own part of the beach. There hasn't been a child of Poseidon until now," explained Katie.

"This is so cool!" Percy grinned widely, acting all giddy.

"I wonder how my place looks like," Annabeth said thoughtfully.

"Victorian style," replied Katie. "A lot of books shelves chucked with books."

Annabeth smiled. "I like the sound of that."

"Of course you do, Wise Girl," Percy teased. "But I get a beach!"

Annabeth – naturally – rolled her eyes. "Of course you do, Seaweed Brain," she mimicked Percy's voice. "But I get the books!"

Instead of replying back to her, Percy seemed to be distracted. "Swimming!" Percy cheered, running towards the waters, tearing off his shirt and grabbing a surf board.

"PERCY!" Katie screeched. "GET BACK HERE, YOU STUPID FISH!"

"Ooh, good one," Annabeth complimented, then turning her head to Percy's to shout an insult too. But she got distracted staring at his shirtless body surfing the waves.

"Looks like we're going to have to get him back by force," Katie sighed, shaking her head. "Here," she says, handing Annabeth a small rock.

Annabeth returned from her daze, trying to avoid looking at Percy. She can't be staring at him like that. Blinking for a few moments, she realized that Katie placed a stone in her hands. "What's this for?" she questioned.

"We're pelting him with rocks from afar so that we wouldn't get wet. You good at throwing and aiming?" Katie asked.

"Most definitely," Annabeth nodded her head, agreeing with the plan. She needed to get Percy to put on a shirt. She doesn't want to get distracted again.

The girls gathered up a whole bunch of rocks in less than a minute from the beach and shouted in unison, "**HEY, PERCY!**"

Percy turned his head from concentrating on surfing to the girls, who were throwing rocks at him.

"AUGH!" Percy yelped, falling into the waters with a large splash from the magical flying rocks. At first, he was still submerged in the water for about a few minutes, causing Annabeth to worry a little, but his head soon popped out from under water. He swam back to surface with a mischievous look on his face. "I can breathe underwater!" Percy exclaimed with a bow. "I can't believe I never noticed that. Remember the pond incident? Huh. I could've just breathed underwater instead of holding my breath."

"You what?" Annabeth groaned. _Such a cheater,_ she thought to herself.

Katie grabbed Percy by the ear and dragged him to the front door of his new house. Yeah that's right; he still doesn't have his shirt on. But that's not what was on Annabeth's mind right now.

**Annabeth's POV**

I've got to say. I absolutely just love the architecture of this building.

"This place's for the leader of Poseidon's district. Every district has a leader. The leader has to make sure that their district's clean and needs to help out with everybody in their district that needs help with anything important. I'm the leader of Demeter's district. It's a tough job," Katie sighed. "You're so lucky you're the only one here," she told Percy.

Percy just grinned. "Another reason to add into my 'why Percy is so cool' list."

"You're so big-headed," I rolled my eyes with a smirk.

_But that's another reason to add to your 'Why Percy is so Perfect for Annabeth' list,_ whispered a voice. Oh my gods, Aphrodite! Why does she love invading my personal space? My mind isn't a diary for gods to read!

_GET OUT OF MY HEAD! _I mentally screeched.

_Hm, I'll visit later,_ she says.

I mentally groaned.

"Wait. That means I'm a leader?" Percy asked.

Katie nodded her head. "Obviously, since you're the only one here. And sometimes Chiron, our mayor, might call on a meeting, needing all leaders at the Big House. It's a huge responsibility. I seriously can't believe someone immature like you is going to be a leader. Don't mess up."

"Yes, ma'am!" Percy saluted, with me shaking my head with a smile. Percy was so childish.

"Anyways," Katie says. "Nobody's ever seen the inside of this house since it's only for the children of Poseidon. I can't wait to check it out!"

"Can we go in then?" I hoped.

"One sec! I need to find the keys! Chiron left them somewhere where the Stolls won't be able to find them…" Katie mumbled to herself, searching through the bushes. When Katie found the keys, she hastily fit it through the keyhole and twisted it. "Whoa! Hey! It won't budge!" she scowled, kicking the door.

"Hey! That's my house!" Percy complained.

"Let me try?" I suggested, and Katie handed me the key. It fit perfectly through the hole, but when I tried to turn it, it wouldn't move. I frowned and tried several more times.

"Here," Percy offered. He placed his hand on mine and I could feel my face start to colour. He helped me twist the key, and the door instantly made a clicking sound. "Looks like I can only open it," Percy told us.

"Maybe it's because it only opens to children of Poseidon?" I guessed.

"I think so," Percy replied, pushing the door wide open. We all gaped at the beach house. It was so…perfect. That lucky fish. The place was beautiful! We walked inside to get a better look.

The floor was made of nice smooth, high quality wood. The walls were painted sea blue. And the windows? Oh gods, the beautiful windows. They were glass with those remote-controlled curtains, where with a press of a button, the curtains close and open themselves. And the glasses of the windows were so clear! The pillars! There are those beautiful Greek pillars, although they were painted black! The colour black actually looked exquisitely wonderful with everything around it. And the railings for the staircase were black as well. And the colour of the steps? Beautiful emerald green with specks of white and blue.

I was completely speechless.

"Is there a fridge with food around here?" was what Percy said. I mean, seriously? Such a beautiful house and all he thinks about was the food.

"I don't think so. If there was, it would've molded by now. You could buy some at," Katie shuddered. "Luke's store," she finished. "But hey! Come visit mine whenever you need some flowers or honey!"

"Will do," Percy agreed. "I want to check the kitchen first."

We followed Percy into the kitchen, and like I said, absolutely beautiful. The counter tops were make of green marble as well as the floor which was checkered blue and white. There was a nice stove, oven and microwave. There were wooden cupboards, which I'm pretty sure contains plates, bowl, pots, pans, and obviously cups. By the kitchen was the dining room. There was a beautiful crystal chandelier and dark wooden table with a smooth top. The chairs looked like the ones from fancy restaurants. And one side of the walls was entirely made of glass, giving a beautiful view of the strawberry fields, a bit further away from here. And to Percy's satisfaction, there was a stainless steal fridge in the kitchen.

Percy, being the hungry whale he is, swiftly swung the refrigerator's door open. "There's food!" he cheered, taking out some moldy cheese.

"Ew…" Katie and I commented in disgust.

"Throw that away!" I demanded.

"It smells bad," he said thoughtfully.

"That's why you _throw it away_!" I said.

"Please don't eat that. If you do, the girl of your dreams may never want to kiss you. Ever," Katie shuddered.

I felt a pang of jealously. I _still _don't know who he likes! I tried my best to let that one slide as Percy threw the cheese in the trash can.

"Who is it?" I ask angrily. Whoops. I tried.

"Oh, Annabeth. Don't worry. He'll tell you one day," Katie reassured me.

"I don't like anyone that way!" Percy protested.

"Fine," I huffed. I turned to the living room. I want to kill Seaweed Brain now. A flat screen television? A black laptop sitting on that fine wooden desk by that spinning soft chair? Black leather modern sofas and loveseats in front of that glass coffee table? The room was painted sea blue as well, with similar windows. But most of all, I seriously can't forget that the walls were hung with empty photo frames. It was scattered everywhere on the walls. All of them empty. And that lucky Seaweed Brain gets to fill them! And the floor? It was soft algae green carpet. I took a step forward, and it felt like I was walking on pillows.

"Annabeth?" Percy cautiously asked me.

"Gods, I'd kill for this place," I murmured to myself.

"I hope that's not me," Percy joked, causing me to crack a smile.

"Don't count on it," I smirked back.

"Hey Katie? I need an entire armor set," says Percy.

I laughed with Katie. "Oh don't worry. You'll be perfectly fine. Kind of," she replied.

"Reassuring," Percy commented, and we laughed.

We noticed another room beside the living room. I noticed it was a study room. It's not like Percy's ever going to use it. The place again, had blue walls and green carpet. There were paint easels and desks in that room. There were some books, but most of them were on Greek or marine life. There was a shelf occupied with paint and brushes. The place was nice, and I seriously envied Percy. I really hope I get a house like this.

"Check out the washroom!" Percy called from somewhere.

That was when Katie and I found out Percy ran off somewhere. I shook my head and followed where his voice was.

I found Percy striking a pose in the mirror, which caused me to stifle a laugh. Hades, the walls were a huge mirror. The toilet was black, as well as the sink. And the shower and tub? The shower had checkered black and blue patterns. The tub was checkered green and black, the green reminding me of Percy's eyes. The floor was tiled black like obsidian. This bathroom overall, was amazing too.

"What are you doing?" Katie sighed.

"Don't I look like a model?" Percy asked us, striking another pose. This time, I had to laugh out loud.

Katie rolled her eyes and said, "You are the weirdest person ever."

"I know right?" Percy agreed, making me laugh harder. "Let's go upstairs! I want to check out my room!"

Katie and I nodded in agreement and followed him up. The washroom on the second floor was the exact duplicate of the one downstairs. There were three rooms up here. The first one had green painted walls and sea blue carpet. There was a wooden desk and chair at the corner. By that was a wardrobe. There was a king sized bed with black sheets and metallic blue and green pillows. The second room was similar to the first room, but it was smaller with a single bed. The third room was different. It had sparkling grey walls and wooden floor like the hallway. The wardrobe looked the same – black. And there was a desk and chair. But the bed? Oh, the miraculous water bed with pure white pillows and soft black blankets. How much I want to steal this room from Percy. It's a shame I don't live here.

"Waterbed!" Percy fist pumped the air, running to it then jumping up and down on it.

"How old is he?" Katie asked me.

"Physically: sixteen. Mentally: six," I answered.

"That explains it," she nodded her head in agreement.

"Percy, we're going to look at the third floor. Want to follow?" I ask.

"Sure!" he says, jumping off and following us.

We walked up the fantastic staircase and I was breathless. The third floor was an aquarium. It was filled with fishes! I mean, nobody's been here since, forever! Who fed these fishes? Anyways, it was beautiful. The aquarium was like the letter U in the room, leaving space in the middle for us to walk through. And in the middle of the space were a couple of long black benches, their backs facing each other so that it would look towards the fishes in the humongous tank of water that reached the ceiling. The floor was tiled in black and green. And the ceiling that wasn't covered by the water tanks? It was see-through. I could watch the clouds shift in the blue sky. This place was spectacular!

"Wow…" I breathed.

"Fishes!" Percy said, waving at them in front of the tank.

"You're right. Mentally six years old," Katie nodded her head in confirmation.

I laughed. "Of course I'm right. Aren't I always?"

"Yep, a daughter of Athena," Katie says.

Percy was tapping at the tank. "Hey! Where're you going! Swim back here!"

I laughed again, but much louder. "Percy, if you tap on the tank, you're just going to scare them."

Percy looked at me and shrugged. "Who feeds them?"

"No one, I guess. Look," Katie observed.

The ceiling of the tanks sprinkled some fish feed into the waters.

"I guess that's how they don't starve," I said to myself.

"So I don't have to feed them, right?" Percy asked.

"I don't think so, Seaweed Brain," I replied, rolling my eyes.

"So…we go swimming now?" he hoped.

"Actually, I think it would be fair if we went to Annabeth's place first," Katie suggested.

"Aww…" Percy whined.

"Don't be so selfish!" Katie scolded.

"Yes, Mother," Percy says sarcastically, causing me to smirk.

"District Six?" I ask.

"Correct-o," Katie nodded. "Let's get out of this mansion."

We exited the oh-so wonderful building and started heading off to my place. It wasn't a long walk, just about twenty minutes until we got to the district. My district? A lot more crowded than Percy's, obviously. There were people wandering everywhere, going to little ice cream stands and hanging out at a large fountain. From all the people I see, was just a population of about ten to fifteen. The houses there were definitely Victorian styled in red bricks and grey tiled roofs.

Katie dragged us to the largest building and knocked on the door. The door almost instantly swung open, revealing a boy clearly younger than me by a couple of years. He had blond scruffy hair and grey eyes, similar to mine. He first greeted us with a warm smile.

"And who are these new people?" says the boy.

"Malcolm, this is Annabeth, a daughter of Athena," Katie introduced him to me. "Annabeth, this is Malcolm."

"It's nice to meet you, Annabeth. Like Katie said, my name's Malcolm, and I'm you're half-brother. I'm also the leader of this district," he says proudly.

"Not bad," I complimented.

"Well, we have an extra house available for you. I'll be right back," says Malcolm.

"What happened to me?" Percy asked Katie.

"Poseidon and Athena rivalry. Let's not introduce you yet," Katie suggested.

Percy and I agreed by nodding our heads.

Malcolm returned with a key and led us to my house. Let me tell you, it was a clear disappointment that my house looked a lot smaller than Percy's, but I pretended to be happy.

"Here's the key. If you need anything, you know where to find me," Malcolm told me. Then he turned his head to Percy. "I'm sorry. I didn't introduce myself properly to you. My name's Malcolm. You are?"

Uh-oh. If Malcolm finds out Percy's godly parent, he'd probably kick Percy out of the district for good.

"My name's Percy. Percy Jackson," he said.

I mentally sighed. It's a good thing Percy didn't decide to be a Seaweed Brain right now.

"Good to meet you. I'll leave you three alone then," Malcolm says.

"You can tag along if you'd like. We won't mind," Percy offered.

I spoke too soon. THAT SEAWEED BRAIN!

Malcolm grinned. "That'd be cool."

Percy turned to me. "See? This proves to Thalia that using the word cool is cool."

I laughed, forgetting about being nervous that Malcolm, the leader of district six, might find out that Percy's dad's Poseidon. "Of course."

"Thalia? She's here? Huh. I haven't heard from her in a long time now," Malcolm says.

"She's with the hunters right now," I answered. "Coming back later."

Malcolm nodded his head. "Well, we should head on in."

I twisted the key and the door creaked open. Inside was beautiful, but not as beautiful as Percy's house. In front of the front door was my living room. There were shelves and books. Lots of it. The place was practically a library itself. The floor was wooden ad the walls were painted grey. There were couches in the room, in front of the coffee table. There wasn't a television, I didn't mind about that, and a couple of desks and chairs. One of the desks had a stack of paper and stationery. The other had a white laptop with an owl imprinted on it.

I walked over to the bathroom and opened the door. Everything was plain white. The tub, sink and toilet. It was clean. So squeaky clean that it was sparkling.

Over at the kitchen was a stainless steel fridge, stove, and oven. The countertops were wooden, instead of marble. The floor had the classic black and white checkered tiles. The place was nice.

"You should take a look at your room," Malcolm suggested. "It's pretty cool."

"There's that word again!" Percy pointed out.

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up, Percy," I said, trying my best to avoid the nickname, Seaweed Brain.

"Yes, Percy. People use the word, 'cool'. Now chillax," says Katie.

"Fine, fine," Percy shrugged, and Malcolm laughed.

We headed upstairs on the wooden staircase and across the hallway; beside the washroom was a bedroom door. I opened it and peaked inside.

My room had a nice window, the type where there's that little rectangular bed or seat by it. It had a couple of pillows and beside it was a large book shelf with more books. The walls were painted grey like downstairs. I had a single bed with a greyish-blue blanket and pillow that matched the carpet. The house was kept basic, and it was pretty good, despite the size of it. I can't believe Percy gets a bigger place than me.

"My house is larger because I'm the leader of the district," Malcolm explained. I understood why Percy had a bigger house. "I've been here longer than anyone else in this town. I was in Town Half-Blood since I was four."

"Impressive," I smiled.

"You still like the place, right?" Malcolm asked nervously.

"I do. This place looks fantastic," I said with feeling.

Malcolm sighed with relief. "That's great. Some people hate the style of their house, or get jealous because mine's bigger. But they get used to it overtime."

"Of course, you can always steal the place of being a leader," Katie added.

I raised my eyebrow. "Really? That's actually possible?"

"Unlikely though," Malcolm says.

"You have to get a quest from Chiron and our oracle of Delphi. If you come back alive, you get to choose if you want to take position as a leader. Basically, the person who's been on most quests or been here longer is the leader of their district," Katie explained.

"But quests don't come easily. Usually Big Three children gets them, since they're more powerful. Thalia got one once. She saved the naiads in Town Half-Blood from a disease. It turns out Hecate misplaced her poisonous potions…Anyways, after that quest; Thalia came back with a bunch of pinecones and started playing with them. Artemis recruited her a couple days afterwards," says Malcolm. "The point is, people don't get quests easily. I haven't seen the outside world in a long time. I IM my dad from time to time though."

"IM?" Percy asks. "Instant Message?"

"Iris Message," Malcolm corrected.

"Iris Message? How does that work?" I wondered.

"Basically, you need water and sunlight to create a rainbow. Then you toss the drachma into the water and say, 'Oh Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow, please accept my offering,' then say the name and location of who you want to contact," Katie explained to us. "Then a mist appears, showing the person you contacted and talk to them like that."

I nodded my head in understanding. "But what about cell phones?"

"Cell phones and internet don't mix with half-bloods. It's like sending a message to the monsters, telling them where you are. Although there's a magic barrier around this town, it's better safe than sorry. And the laptops we have are only used for demigods, through the Half-Blood Satellite. The Hephaestus and Athena's district a long time ago created it. Surely there are internet and cellphones in the real world, but most people like writing letters. I don't know. They say it's 'classy' and 'formal'. We demigods find it weird," Katie said, in practically one breath.

"So…it's not instant message?" Percy asked.

I face palmed myself. "You don't listen, do you?" I sighed.

Percy smiled and shook his head as if it was a good thing.

I groaned as Katie and Malcolm laughed.

"Oh, hey! I've also got to introduce you to our district friend," Malcolm says.

"Uh-oh," Katie accidently said aloud.

"Uh-oh?" Malcolm asked, confused.

"Uh, nothing! I just – I need to get Percy to do something! I'll, uh, be right back!" Katie panicked for some reason. I felt a bit angry that Katie was going to take Percy somewhere. Was Katie cheating on Travis for Percy? Does Percy like Katie and won't tell me about it? Just thinking of it makes me sick.

"Why?" I asked Percy. You could hear the anger wavering in my voice.

Percy looked at me blankly and shrugged. "I dunno."

"Don't you know? Sorry, Mal, but it's kind of private," Katie told him.

"You guys could go after they meet him," Malcolm says.

"NO! I mean, it's urgent," Katie corrected herself.

Malcolm shrugged. "Alright. I'll be outside. I'm going to search for him."

With that, Malcolm ran out the house to find his friend.

"We have to leave," Katie whispered-shrieked.

"Why?" I ask.

"Because the 'district friend' is an owl. It has these huge radar senses. All children of Athena can speak to owls and understand what they say. And this owl can figure out whose godly parent is Percy's."

Realization crossed my face. "Uh-oh," Percy and I said in unison.

"Quick! We need to get Percy out of here!" Katie whispered-shrieked again.

We tiptoed and ran out the house at the same time. We were so close to the exiting the district until Malcolm and his 'friend' stopped us.

"Hey! Wait up!"

Being the losers we are, we froze and turned around.

"H-Hey, Malcolm!" Percy says nervously.

"Hey! You okay?"

"F-Fine, thanks," Percy tried to grin.

"Oh, okay. Anyways, this is my friend I wanted you all to meet," Malcolm told us, pointing to the owl on his shoulder. "He's been my best friend since I was four. He guided me to town. His name's Cookie. Don't laugh at the name. Like I said, I was four."

"Uh, hey Cookie," Percy waved at it.

The snow-white owl turned its head to Percy. It was staring at him with his grey eyes, analyzing him. I gulped.

_This boy smells weird, _says Cookie.

It freaked me out a bit when I heard it talk. It freaked me out more when he said that Percy smelled weird. And I actually found that offense. Percy smells _great_. Uh, I mean, yeah. Yeah. It's normal for a friend to know what her best guy friend smells like. Right? Yeah.

"Weird?" Malcolm asked the bird aloud.

_Strange. I'm not sure about his godly parent. He doesn't have any similar scent to any of the twelve Olympians, _Cookie answered.

I mentally sighed. That means the bird didn't know who Percy's godly parent is.

"Minor?" Malcolm suggested.

_Must be, _the bird agreed.

I mentally sighed for the second time. Wait – _minor_! His dad's one of the Big Threes! That's an insult!

"Uh?" Percy says stupidly.

Katie stood beside him, fiddling with her fingers nervously.

"Hmm…" Malcolm thought. "Hey, Percy?"

"Huh? Yeah?" Percy asked.

"Who's your godly parent?"

* * *

**I finally finished chapter eight!  
Whoo!  
I hope there isn't much spelling or grammar errors.  
I didn't edit again.  
**

**I worked so long on this.  
I spent most of today shopping at the mall with my friends for hours :D  
LMAO~ I sure worked hard :D  
I bought KFC popcorn chicken at the food court. And I ate a McFlurry at McDonalds from Cocoberrii ;D  
I didn't really buy anything else from the mall... Food's awesome, right?**

**Character: Cookie, the owl, is an idea from MewJollyRancher12 ! :D  
Thanks~ **

**I just wrote like, 200 words in the past six days. Finished the rest today ;D  
At night...  
And -GASP-  
Almost 5000 words! ;D (Including A/N)  
But unfortunately shorter by about fifty words in the previous chapter... **

**Anyways, Please review! The more reviews the better!  
I need more motivation! :D  
Best if it's one of those long and awesome reviews instead of just "please update". I mean, what kind of review is that? D:  
REVIEW means to tell me what you think or give me suggestions ;D  
THAT's the kind of motivation I want :D  
**

**Dear Cocoberrii,  
I most definitely do not appreciate your reviews on saying how awesome you are when clearly, I'm more awesome than you. :D **

**And I repeat again to you wonderful readers, please review! Click on the fantastic Review button down there. ;3VVVVVVV**

**And don't forget! Vote on my poll for what I should write next after Town Half-Blood!**


	9. Chapter 9: Getting Ready

**Disclaimer: RUN FOR YOUR LITTLE PATHETIC LIVES! I'M NOT A FREAKING GUY! I'm going to imaginatively, virtually throw chibi Riordans at whoever thought I was him!**

**Previously:**

_Katie stood beside him, fiddling with her fingers nervously._

"_Hmm…" Malcolm thought. "Hey, Percy?"_

"_Huh? Yeah?" Percy asked._

"_Who's your godly parent?_

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Nine**

"M-My, uh, wha?" Percy stuttered.

"Who's your godly parent? You know, my mom's Athena?" Malcolm asked.

"Oh, you mean my mom?" Percy asked, running his hand through his hair nervously.

"Yeah, I guess."

"She's the queen of Atlantis in the mortal world. Why?"

Malcolm mentally face palmed himself, ignoring the thought that Percy was royalty. There were lots of famous demigods out there anyways. "Then who's your dad?"

"_Poseidon! Poseidon!" _the owl screeched, finally realizing it. "_He's Poseidon's boy! Don't you get it? Poseidon gave the city, Atlantis to a mortal woman that he loved! So he's Poseidon's boy!"_

Annabeth tensed and bit her lip. The owl, Cookie, noticed this and turned to her.

"_You knew! You knew who his father was!" _says the bird.

Malcolm furrowed his eyebrows. "Poseidon?" he growled. "That's impossible!"

"_But it is! You've seen Thalia!" _the bird reminded him.

Malcolm turned to Annabeth. "You _knew_?"

Annabeth shuffled from side to side, looking down at her sneakers. "Percy's different!" she defended.

"But he's the son of _Poseidon_," Malcolm hissed.

"Standing right here," Percy said.

"_YOU_," Malcolm said viciously. "You're the son of _Poseidon_, and you dare come into our district?" Percy winced at the way he said his father's name with disgust.

"What's wrong with my dad?" Percy countered.

"Our mother's rival! So get out! Don't ever come back!" Malcolm ordered, causing some Athena kids around them to stop and watch what was happening.

Percy stood there blinking. "I knew that. But what's wrong with my dad? What do _you _have against him?"

"He's our _mother's_ rival, and that's all there is to it!"

"Hm…You know, you were a lot nicer before," Percy commented.

Katie stood there, watching their argument. _Seriously, Percy? _Katie thought to herself. _You're making it worse!_

"That's because I didn't know who your father was! I can't believe I didn't notice!" Malcolm shouted at himself in frustration.

"Breath in, Breath out," Percy suggested.

"This isn't funny!" Malcolm yelled. "Get out! Don't ever come back!"

Percy sighed and ran his fingers through his hair again. "Alright then."

Annabeth had a worried look on her face, telepathically begging Percy to not leave, and he seemed to understand.

"Hey, don't worry," Percy grinned at her. "I might not be able to come here, but we can always meet somewhere else."

"But –," Annabeth tried to protest. However, Percy placed a finger on her lips to keep her quiet, causing her heart to beat a little faster.

"It's alright. We're supposed to go to Silena's after the tour, right? I'll see you there," Percy grinned again.

"I'll make sure the fish doesn't get lost," Katie assured her.

Annabeth just nodded and watch the two of them leave. When they were out of sight, she turned around nervously to confront Malcolm, even though he was younger. She let out a shaky breath as Malcolm glowered at her with that evil owl on his shoulders, waiting to be attacked with insults and lectures.

**Annabeth's POV**

Malcolm just glared at me. That was it. He didn't say a word. He's still standing there, glaring as if his life depends on it.

"So?" I tried to get him to talk.

"You're friends with him," Malcolm stated.

"So?' I repeated.

"And you likehim even though his dad's Poseidon."

"S– Wait! I don't like Percy that way! We're just friends," I protested.

Malcolm raised an eyebrow. "Who said I was talking about _that _kind of like?"

I blushed, feeling pretty stupid right now.

"So you _like _him?" Malcolm asked. He seemed very calm about it.

"Not _that _like! Just friends," I answered. "Like I said, Percy's different. He's nice. You shouldn't judge him like that even if his father's Poseidon."

"What if he's using you to help his father get revenge on Athena?"

I laughed. I seriously laughed. "That's the stupidest question ever!"

Malcolm looked offended. "Excuse me?"

I calmed down a bit. "Sorry," I chuckled. "But Percy isn't smart enough to even do something like that. It's like he literally has kelp in his head. You saw him. He acts pretty childish and he surely isn't the smartest cookie in the jar." I smiled at the thought. It's true, plus Percy would never do anything to hurt me. I'm sure of it.

Malcolm thought quietly to himself. "But we still shouldn't be friends with him."

I noticed there was something wrong with that sentence. He used the word _we _instead of _you_. Is it possible that Malcolm wanted to be friends with Percy too?

"You don't have to, but I want to," I answer.

"If Mom gets angry, don't blame me for not warning you," Malcolm said.

He walked away, back into his house and slammed the door shut. I sighed and strode out of my district, leaving the gapping Athenians who were watching us. I started to head towards district ten to find Silena, where Percy and Katie were supposed to be. But along the way, I spotted Katie jogging towards my direction.

"Hey!" Katie waved at me.

I waved back as we jogged over to each other so that we could talk. "Where's Percy?" I asked.

"Oh, he's with Silena."

"You left him there?"

"Well…Silena can be a little scary when it comes to dressing up. I don't want to be her Barbie doll, so I left as soon as I knocked the door for Percy."

"Um…Barbie doll?" I wondered, feeling a bit terrified now.

"Oh don't worry about that, come on," says Katie, and we started walking.

On the way to the Aphrodite's, Katie kept talking about the Hermes district and how horrible Luke was. She seriously has something against him.

"And Luke's trying to make a party at the Hermes district this evening as well, so that he would make Mary's party a failure! I can't believe the nerve of him! Now everybody's going to the Hermes' district instead of the Apollo's," Katie rambled.

"Um, isn't your boyfriend in the Hermes' district?" I ask.

"Well, yeah, but he's going to Mary's party with me. Travis says all Luke cares about is popularity. He can manipulate people into going over to his side. That's one of the things on why I like him. We both think Luke's a psychopath," Katie grinned.

"A psychopath? Isn't that an overstatement?" I wondered.

"No, not really. He doesn't like the gods. How weird is that? Anyways, we're here! Knock on the door! I'll see you at the Party!" And with that, Katie dashed off, back to her district.

I stood in front of the small house that looked smaller than mine in fact. Wasn't Silena the leader of this district? Why's her house small? I shook the thought away and I knocked on the door and Silena answered it a minute later.

"Hey, Annie! It's so good to see you again!" Silena squealed happily, and ushered me inside. The place looked as small as it did outside. All there is inside was a staircase leading…downstairs?

"This way!" Silena says, and hauled me down the stairs revealing a huge underground…room, like a basement.

It was huge. And covered in pink. Lots and lots of pink. There were lots of doors leading to gods know where. Silena pulled me to a pink door, like most of them, which had a red heart on it.

"Over here's the girls dressing room," Silena told me. Then she shoved me inside.

"Whoa, what?" I asked.

The room, again, was entirely pink. There was a huge wardrobe and a large mirror and a white desk with piles of makeup on top of it. There was a fluffy pink chair and Silena forced me to sit down.

I sat on the chair as Silena rummaged through the wardrobe.

"So, Annie," Silena started. "Care to explain why Percy didn't have a shirt on when he came in?"

My face reddened. I've almost completely forgotten that he was shirtless. "Um, he went surfing."

Silena nodded her head in understanding. "And you like it, right?"

"Liked what?" I tried to play dumb. It wasn't my best suit, but I've got to change the subject.

"You know, watching him surf…sans a shirt?"

"I'm sorry; I was too busy pelting him with rocks." Dang, I should become an actress.

"Alright, alright. So what do you think of this dress?" Silena asked. She held up a dress that was dark blue almost like the sky at night. Before I could answer, she said, "No, it doesn't match your look. Hmm…"

Silena went through the whole wardrobe and she kept saying that none of them suits me. Really? The entire wardrobe? Did I mention how large that wardrobe was? It contains thousands of dresses, meaning I have to hear, "No, that's not it," _thousands _of times. So right now, there's this huge pile of clothes lying on the floor beside Silena.

"Not a single one!" Silena yelled in frustration.

"You know, the first one looked nice," I suggested, since, that was the only dress I remembered.

"No, no, no! That won't do at all!" Silena disagreed. "There _has _to be a colour that fits you!"

I opened my mouth to speak but she said in a scary voice, "Don't. Talk. Or else."

I nodded my head silently. Who knew Aphrodite kids could be so intimidating? So I sat there, butt sore from sitting for so long as Silena started looking through drawers in the desk. She took out papers with different colours. I recognized them, I think. I saw them when my stepmom and stepbrothers came back from the paint stores.

"Let's see…" she muttered to herself, holding out the orange coloured one in front of me. "Nope," and she switched to another colour. She held out a green one and looked at it thoughtfully, and then putting it aside, selecting another shade of green. She placed that one aside too, taking out another. This time, she smiled to herself and looked at my face.

"I got it! I have just the perfect dress for you! I'll be right back! You stay still," Silena says enthusiastically, skipping out of the room.

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

I swear it felt like I've been here for _hours_. I feel like I can't stand waiting anymore. Especially since my butt can't take any more from this pain. Just as I was about to get up and stretch for a couple of seconds before Silena returned, she opened the door. Great timing. Now I have to continue sitting on the awfully painful pink chair. It looks fluffy, but it sure as Hades doesn't feel like it.

"Annie! I'm back!" Silena sang. "And I have a surprise dress for you!"

"Er…great. Can I stand up?" I hoped.

"Not yet! I've got to help you apply some makeup!"

My eyes widened from horror. Let me tell you, I've seen my stepmother wear makeup. And it does not look pretty. At all. More like a clown to me. I really don't want to look like that. I mean, really. Does blue lipstick look casual to you? I highly doubt it. I sure hope that this daughter of Aphrodite can to better than her.

"Uh…sure…" was all I could say.

"Oh, don't worry! Don't you underestimate the power of Aphrodite! She's not only the goddess of love, but beauty too!" Silena reassured me. I probably don't look convinced because Silena frowned. "Oh come on. Do I look ugly to you?"

Definite no. I shook my head.

"See? I can make you look pretty too! Now, don't you worry about it! I'll just put on minimal amount of makeup on you, okay?"

I agreed by nodding my head. "Um, but, can I stretch first? I feel like I've been sitting here forever."

Silena gave me a confused look. "Of course you can! Why didn't you just stand up earlier? I thought you were a daughter of Athena!"

I feel insulted.

"I'll give you five minutes. I need to check on Percy. I hope my sisters are gentle on him."

"Oh. Sisters?" I asked, feeling a bit angry and…protective of Percy I think. I mean, I'm his friend. I need to protect him from mobs of extremely beautiful girls who want to be his girlfriend. Right?

"Don't worry about that either," Silena winked. "They're already taken, and aren't the types to cheat on their boyfriends."

I felt a wave of relief wash through me. "Oh. That's good to know," I muttered, standing up.

"Of course it is. I know how much you like him," Silena grinned evilly.

"As a friend?" I hoped that was what she meant. I mean, first Thalia thought I was Percy's girlfriend, and then Katie implies that I like Percy, and _Malcolm_, my half-brother _also _says I like Percy, and now it's Silena. Do you know how irritating that is? I don't like like Percy. We're friends. A single like. Not a double like. Just like. Get it? Good. Don't look at me like that. Who are you? One of the gods?

"No, silly!" says Silena. Uh-oh. And _heerre _comes torture! "I meant like a crush!"

"No," I instantly answered.

"Oh, that's too bad…" Silena sighed, although the look in her eyes doesn't seem like it. She acting, and I know it, even though she's good at it too. See how smart I am? I'm a daughter of _Athena_. DON'T go insulting my intelligence.

"Why?" I asked cautiously.

"Well…I may have told Percy that I'd try and get you to be his date for his party…and he seemed pretty excited about it…" Silena smirked.

"You're lying right? I mean, Percy only thinks of us as friends," I squeaked in a small voice. Uh-oh. And _heerre _comes the girly Annabeth! "So he was excited about it?" I asked, voice a little squeaky and feeling a bit way too giddy inside. For some unknown reason. Maybe it's because that way, Percy wouldn't get a date and a mob of gorgeous looking girls wouldn't be asking him out for the party. Yeah, that's it. See? I'm being protective. I'm such a good friend.

Silena nodded her head. "Mmhm! It's a shame you don't want to be his date. I wonder what his expression would be like once I told him…"

"NO! I mean, no, that's okay. I'll be his date. I mean, as a friend. You know, friends…" I faltered, hoping she'd get what the meaning of "friends" was between a boy and girl.

Silena beamed. "Alright! I'll go tell him that! You sit down and stay put! Just friends! Got it," she said smiling. "Starting off as friends is a good way to start a relationship…" I heard Silena mutter, leaving the room and closing the door behind her.

I blushed hearing what she whispered. There was _no way _I'd date a Seaweed Brain. Then I remembered something else she had said, and groaned as I sat back down on the aching chair. And _heerre _comes pain!

**Percy's POV**

I was sitting in this awfully painful chair while some of the Aphrodite girls tried to get my hair straight. It wasn't working, but they're not giving up on it. I wonder how Annabeth was doing.

Silena came in not so long ago, telling me that she'd ask Annabeth if I'd be her date. I tried to stop her, but that girl's as stubborn as a dog. I sure hope Annabeth doesn't say she won't want me to be friends with her anymore because of this whole 'date at the party' thing.

As if on cue, Silena entered. She came in with this bag. It looked like there was a dress or something in it. Maybe it's Annabeth's dress? "Hey! How are my girls doing?" she asked.

"This is hard work! His hair won't stay still!" One of her sisters complained.

I smirked. "It never stays still. Why try?" I ask, hoping this boring thing ends. My butt aches from sitting here. I need to ask Silena to get a better chair. "Hey, Silena? Can you get a softer chair for me to sit on? My butt hurts."

"What? The chair's perfect as it is! Now shut up and hear what I've got, Percy!" Silena clapped her hands happily.

I groaned. This better be good. "Yes, Silena?" I asked her politely.

"Annabeth says yes!" Silena squealed.

My eyes widened. "Wh-what?" I sputtered, not believing what I just heard.

"For the date! Annabeth says yes!" Silena clarified for me.

"Really?" I grinned. Who would've thought? I don't like Annabeth that way though. You know, friends. But just a date. As friends. I hope that's what Annabeth thought of it. If she thought the other way…that'd be weird. I mean, Annabeth wouldn't want to ever be with a guy like me. But I still thought Annabeth would turn me down because–

"Oh, but she says as friends," Silena told me thoughtfully.

My grin faded. I wasn't sure why though. I should be happy. "Oh. That's great!" I faked my enthusiasm. "Um, did she want to go? Or did you force her into this?" I ask.

"She was ecstatic when she heard you wanted to go to the party with her as your date," Silena answered.

My eyes lit up. "Annabeth wanted to go with me? I mean, we're just friends and all. You know, friends…" I faltered, hoping she understood the meaning of "friends" between a boy and a girl. Must be tough for an Aphrodite girl. I feel sorry for them. Kind of.

"Mmhm," Silena waved it off. "It's just about one and a half more hours until the party. I'll have Annabeth ready by then. You should too, Percy!" and then she left, leaving me to my torture as the other girls tried to get my hair straight.

This meant one and a half more hours of sitting in this butt-aching chair.

This also meant I have to deal with these girls combing my hair.

But this also means there's just one and a half hours until I get to see Annabeth again. Even though we've only been separated for…half an hour about? It doesn't matter. Things just seem more fun when I'm with her. 'Cause you know, she' my first and best friend.

I silently prayed to the gods to try their best to make this the shortest one and a half hours ever. As soon as I get out of here, I'll be able to see Annabeth again.

But wait, there's more.

I'm Annabeth's date.

But as friends. Get that through your head.

* * *

**Hey, hey, hey~  
I'm BACK!  
And I've updated early. You know why?  
Because this chapter was a bit over a thousand words less than the previous one. :D  
Eh.**

**So what do you think? Would you like it if my chapters were this short, and update it faster?  
****OR  
Write so freaking damn long (practically having my chapters longer each time) every week?  
Review and tell me what you'd think ;D**

**Annyywayys, I'm supposed to be doing my homework.  
It's about researching for a debate thing.  
...I don't feel like doing it.**

**And, and, and, I didn't edit this either.  
You know what? I'll probably NEVER will ;D**

**IMPORTANT: I've updated another chapter to An Extraordinary Cinderella Story.  
****Again...Even though it's supposed to be completed like, two chapters ago? I think?  
****Eh. Well, it's another chapter on Olympus.  
An IMPORTANT chapter as well ;D**

**My dear, extremely awesome readers, please review ;D  
Tell me what you think! **


	10. Chapter 10: Dance: Confession

**Disclaimer: I'm getting tired of saying this. I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

**Guest Starring: Liana, an OC character from ****princess3170 and Mary Davis from The Daughter of the Greek Gods. (Btw, sorry princess3170! You didn't exactly give me a physical description of Liana.)**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Ten**

Annabeth was glad – more than glad, actually – to finally get up from that irritating chair, and Silena forced her to change into her surprise dress.

The girls who were helping Percy with his hair – and completely given up on it, to Percy's satisfaction – had left Percy to change into his suit.

As soon as the two were ready, they opened the door at the exact same time, seeing each other from across the hall, grinning.

**Annabeth's POV**

I was dressed in this sea green dress that reached my knees. I couldn't help but think of Percy's eyes when I saw this colour. I wore the dress with black flats. I protested and won the argument for not wearing any heels. Those are feet killers.

When I left the room, I spotted Percy right across the hallway. We grinned at each other. Percy looked pretty handsome. You know, I mean, as in a friend's point of view.

Percy wore a white button up shirt and black dress pants and blazer. Percy's hair was all…messy? It looked good on him anyways. It was a lot more messed up than usual. I'm guessing that's what he looks like with a bedhead, but he still pulled it off. He had a green tie that was undone. I walked up to him with smirk on my face.

"Hey," Percy said.

"Hi," I said back to him.

"You look, um, great."

"Not bad yourself too," I said back to him.

Percy smiled at me for a few seconds before turning it into a frown. "You have perfume on?"

"Uh, yeah. Silena sprayed some on me without even asking if I wanted any. Why? You don't like it?" I asked, suddenly feeling a bit nervous.

"Huh? No! That's not what I meant! I like it, it's just that you smell better without any perfume on…Uh…yeah."

I scrunched up my eyebrows in confusion. "I smell better without perfume?"

"Um, your hair smells like lemon," Percy replied, his cheeks a bit pink. It made him look kind of cu – I mean, like, uh…strawberry. Yeah. Strawberry. A sweet tasty looking strawberry…

"Oh…So, you're my date for the party, right?" I wondered, hoping Silena didn't lie about this.

Percy nodded enthusiastically. "As friends though," Percy added.

I nodded as well, but for some reason my heart felt a bit heavy when he said that. But we were just going as friends and that was that.

"Your tie?" I ask, amused.

"Uh…My mom usually helps me with it," he answered sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

I smiled and helped him get his green tie ready. As I was fixing his it, I could feel Percy's eyes on me, and I felt heat creep up to my cheeks. I kept my head down so he wouldn't see my face. Once I was done, my face was still a bit pink, but I dared myself to look up, and I saw Percy staring at me seriously.

"What?" I ask.

Percy blinked for a few second before saying a, "Huh?"

"Why were you staring?" I clarified, feeling a smirk coming on.

"Um, uh. Nothing. Hi?"

I laughed at Percy's incredibly short attention span. It was c – kind of nice. No, I wasn't about to say cute. I mean, Percy's just my friend. Pssh, I would never say that. Well, sure he's my date, but as friends. Remember, I'm doing this to protect him, okay?

As soon as I calmed down from laughter, Silena stood in between us to get our attention.

"We need to get going!" she sang. Then she dragged us up the long staircase and out the door of the pinkest building ever that practically almost made me blind. And during all that, we didn't even have enough time to say a word since we were flabbergasted at Silena's sudden appearance. She just snuck up on us like that! It's freaky.

"I can walk, you know?" Percy finally asked Silena as she hauled us towards the Apollo district.

"Oh, yes. I do know. But you two would be flirting so much rather than walking that we could be late!"

I blushed. "W-We don't flirt!"

"Oh please, you two were flirting not so long ago," Silena smirked, releasing her grip on our arms.

"That wasn't flirting!" I tried to counter.

"It counts as flirting," Silena nodded her head, agreeing with herself.

I looked over at Percy, wondering if he was going to protest, but he just ran his fingers through his hair with a very red face, trying to avoid making eye contact with me.

"Um, Percy? Are you okay?" I asked him.

His head snapped up towards me, face still a bit red. "Yeah! I'm fine," he smiled.

I looked at him skeptically, making sure if he was lying or not. But his smile looked sincere and his eyes were sparkling, so I was pretty sure he was telling the truth.

"Can we go now?" Silena whined. "I'm supposed to meet Charlie there! I don't want to keep him waiting!"

"Uh, yeah; let's go," I decided. "But no more dragging," I added.

Silena sighed dramatically but she agreed. We walked silently over to district seven, three districts away from Silena's. Well, it wasn't _completely _silent. Percy and I were silent. Silena was rambling on about how "Oh-so-wonderful Charlie" is.

"And he makes me such beautiful jewelries! Oh, and Charlie's so kind and gentle. He's so adorable like a panda! And he says that he loves me, and,"

"Kill me now," I mouthed to Percy.

Percy smirked and mouthed back, "Are you sure?"

I nodded my head with pleading eyes, but Percy shook his head in amusement. Then he leaned in close to me, and I could feel he breath on my neck. My heart started to flutter a bit, but I ignored the feeling.

He whispered in my ear, "We're almost there you know? Then we can leave Silena with Panda Charlie and party all we want."

I couldn't hold in a giggle, so I let it out. Which is _so _unlike me, but it made Percy smile.

We were finally there – thank the gods – and what I saw was, well, almost empty, with the song Never Too Late by Three Days Grace that had just started to play.

There were only some people there, not a lot. I noticed Grover with a girl with pointy ears and green hair. There was Clarisse and Chris, you can't miss them. Clarisse was huge. I stopped Beckendorf waiting for Silena over at the punch bowl, and obviously, Silena ran over to him to give Beckendorf a bear hug. Then there was Katie and Travis chatting over at a table with a cup of beer in their hands. Conner was flirting with a girl who I didn't really know. And there was another girl dancing on the dance floor in the middle of the district. There were some guys and girls here too, but most of them were singing songs. I'm guessing they were Apollo kids. I didn't see Nico or Thalia though. Nico did mention something about Luke having the best parties, so I'm guessing he took Thalia there, maybe. That sucks. I wanted to talk to Thalia.

Katie noticed us and her eyes lit up, and then dragged Travis over to us. Seriously, what's with all the dragging people around thing?

"Annabeth! Percy!" Katie grinned.

"Hey," I waved at her.

"Oh! There are a couple of people here I want to introduce you to. Come here!" Katie told us.

"Aw, and _I _have to go?" Travis whined.

"Don't be such a baby, Travis," Katie rolled her eyes.

I looked over at Percy and he shrugged, so we followed the couple over to the dance floor, where the dancing girl was.

The girl had dirty blond hair and bright brown eyes that looked like brownish gold from a distance. She wore a silver tanks top and shorts, and seemed like one of those super cheerful type of person.

"Hey!" Katie called over to her.

The girl's head shot towards us and smiled. "Hi!" she says cheerfully, jogging up to us.

"Mary, this is Annabeth and Percy. Percy, this is Mary Davis," Katie says.

"Nice to meet you," says Percy.

"Same here," I agreed.

"Mary started the party here. She's one of those party people," Katie explained.

"Is that supposed to be a good thing or a bad thing?" Mary asked teasingly.

"Bad," Travis decided.

Mary frowned at Travis. "Ha-ha. I'll kick your butt in archery, Stoll," she threatened.

And apparently, Mary seemed to be like those butt-kicking type of person too. I think we'll be great friends. And then maybe team up – me, Thalia and Mary – and beat up Percy whenever I feel like it.

"We'll see you later Mary!" Katie grinned and led the three of us to Connor and his flirting partner. She had brown long hair and weird violet eyes. She wore a blue silky dress and had her hair braided. When the girl saw Percy, she smiled at him, and for some reason I started to feel angry. I really don't think I'll ever be friends with her.

"Hey, Conner," Travis smirked.

"What's up, Bro?" Conner smirked back.

"Percy, Annabeth, this is Liana. She's a daughter of Hecate, but she stays in the Hermes district since there isn't a place for Hecate children," Katie introduced us to her.

"Nice to meet to Percy," Liana smiled brightly.

Oh yeah, and I'm avoided.

"You too, Liana," Percy beamed.

Why doesn't Percy look at _me _that way?

"I'll leave you guys to the party. Have fun!" Katie says.

"Yeah, bye," Travis waved at us. "Oh, and you two shouldn't go to Luke's party anytime soon," he winked at us. Yep, definitely a Hermes kid.

"I'm going to go over to the snack table. I'm starving," Conner says, and then left us with that _Liana _girl.

"Annabel, right?" Liana asked innocently.

"Anna_beth_," Percy corrected her before I could insult her stupidity.

"Oh, well, nice to meet you," she says with a smug looking smile. "Hey Percy? You want to dance?"

"Huh? Well, I'm here with Annabeth," Percy told her. I inwardly smirked at that little witch.

"Well I'm here with Conner. It's just one dance. It wouldn't hurt," Liana smiled up to him.

Percy looked at me to make sure it was okay. I faked a smiled and nodded, even though I knew Percy could see right through me.

Percy frowned. "Uh, maybe next time," he told Liana, and then took my hand and led me to the punch bowl and snack table.

"Hungry?" I teased.

Percy nodded his head eagerly. "It was torture at Silena's place. The Aphrodite girls spent the entire time trying to straighten my hair," Percy groaned. "I had to sit in this aching chair. They wouldn't let me eat anything."

"I can see they didn't succeeded with your hair," I smirked at him playfully.

Percy gave a chuckle. "Well, I think I look better with my hair this way."

"Sure does," I blurted out without a second thought. I quickly snapped my mouth shut, hoping he hadn't heard that. My cheeks were burning slightly from embarrassment.

He laughed, so I'm guessing he did hear what I had said. "I'm _so _handsome, don't you think?" Percy said striking a pose, and I couldn't help but laugh along with him. Then Percy started to stuff his face with some chips.

"Oh, _yeah_. That's really charming," I commented.

Percy chuckled again and shoved a chip with some sort of dip into my mouth.

"Hey!" I protested as I chewed on the chip he'd fed me. What? If I spat it out, it would've been a waste. And wouldn't that be considered littering?

Percy grinned and looked like he was about to say something until Grover came in.

"Perce! Annabeth! Hey, how've you been?" Grover says with a wide grin.

"Pretty good, G-Man," Percy smiled. "Who's your lady friend?"

Grover blushed. "Uh, this is Juniper. She's a tree nymph."

"Hi!" says the green-haired girl. "Nice to meet you! You two Percy and Annabeth, right?"

I nodded my head. "That's right. Nice to meet you too, Juniper."

As soon as we said that, the Three Days Grace songs ended and they Apollo campers got up to the stage and announced, "Grab a dance partner! This song's going to get slow!"

When he said that, Percy held out a hand and asked nervously, "Want to dance?"

How could I refuse? "Sure, Seaweed Brain," I smirked, and he smiled.

He escorted me to the dance floor, where other couples started to move to, such as Grover and Juniper, Silena and Beckendorf, Travis and Katie, Conner and _Liana_, and surprisingly, Nico and Thalia. I wondered when they arrived.

Nico wore a black button up shirt, blazer, shoes, and dress pants. All black. Want to guess what Thalia wore? Ooh, that's right. A black dress the flowed down to her knees and black heels.

"Nico! Thals!" Percy greeted them.

"Hey! Where've you two been?" I asked.

"We were over at the Hermes'. The punch was spiked, so I dragged Thalia over here. I can't risk having a drunken dance partner," Nico explained.

"Hey! Spiked punch isn't so bad," Thalia defended.

"Well, anyways, who's funeral are you attending?" Percy wondered.

I laughed along with Percy at his little joke.

"Hey, wearing all black isn't a bad thing, you know?" Nico grunted.

"Sure, think what you want," Percy smirked.

Thalia shocked Percy by poking him on the shoulder with her index finger.

"Ow!" he yelped.

"Hey, you can't go around shocking people's date," I frowned.

Thalia and Nico arched an eyebrow and gave each other a knowing look.

"As friends," I added hastily before they could make fun of us.

"Fine," Thalia shrugged.

"I think we missed the Three Days Grace songs," Nico groaned.

"Whoa, what? We missed it?" Thalia whined.

I laughed, and Percy joined me as they gave us confused looks. Those two were just so much alike.

As soon as we calmed down, the music started to play, and Percy placed his hands on my waist, so I took this as a cue to wrap my arms around his neck. I looked over and saw that Thalia and Nico were doing the same.

I faced Percy and he looked a bit nervous.

"Scared?" I teased. "It's just a dance, Percy."  
"Yeah, well, I never really learned how to dance," he says.

I faked a gasp. "The _prince _doesn't know how to _dance_?"

"I never thought I needed to dance," he replied with a sheepish smiled, which caused me to grin.

"Don't worry, you'll do fine," I reassured.

An Apollo camper started to sing.

_I've never gone with the wind  
Just let it flow  
Let it take me where it wants to go  
Till you open the door  
There's so much more  
I've never seen it before _

_I was trying to fly  
But I couldn't find wings  
Then you came along  
And you changed everything_

_You lift my feet off the ground_  
_Spin me around_  
_You make me crazier, crazier_  
_Feels like I'm falling and I_  
_I'm lost in your eyes_  
_You make me crazier,_  
_Crazier, crazier_

It's weird. This song I mean. I started to reflect on the lyrics and thought about all those times Percy made me laugh and joke around. Usually, I'm all serious and, well, dead serious. But ever since Percy came along, I guess I found a small part of me that was, I don't know. Different? Yeah, since Percy, I've been acting different. Crazy almost. Even around other friends like Thalia or Grover, or even Nico, I don't act like the way I do around Percy. I wonder why…

_Watched from a distance as you  
Made life your own  
Every sky was your own kind of blue  
And I wanted to know  
How that would feel  
And you made it so real_

_You showed me something that I couldn't see_  
_Opened my eyes and you made me believe_

Percy _did _make me open my eyes, and see the world away from that cramped up house I lived in. He showed me that there were people who would care for me, and I started to believe in him. No, I already do believe in him._  
_

_You lift my feet off the ground  
Spin me around  
You make me crazier, crazier  
Feels like I'm falling and I  
I'm lost in your eyes  
You make me crazier,  
Crazier, crazier, oh _

At this point, I was staring into Percy's green eyes, and he was smiling down at me.

"Having fun?" he asked.

"Yeah," I whispered, and gently place my head on Percy's shoulder and closed my eyes as we swayed to the music.

_Baby, you showed me what living is for_  
_I don't want to hide anymore_

_You lift my feet off the ground_  
_You spin me around_  
_You make me crazier, crazier_  
_Feels like I'm falling and I_  
_I'm lost in your eyes_  
_You make me crazier,_  
_Crazier, crazier_  
_Crazier, crazier_

The song came to an end and people started to move away from the dance floor.

"See? You didn't break my toes," I smirked at Percy.

Percy gave me his lopsided grin. "Well, what did you know?"

"Yeah, very surprising," I gave a small laugh, and lightly smacked Percy's arm playfully.

"That hurt," Percy pouted, cradling his arm. Drama Queen.

"Sure it did," I laughed. "Come on, I'm thirsty," I said.

I dragged Percy over to the punch bowl and poured myself and Percy a cup, and someone snuck up on us.

"Annie!" someone squealed.

I flinched at the sudden noise, and turned around. I sighed. "Silena, you scared me."

"She scared you? Maybe I should sneak up on you more often," Percy chuckled.

I hit the back of his head.

"Ow! Hey! What?"

I rolled my eyes and ignored his question. "Yeah, Silena?" I asked.

"Are you having a fun time," she wondered, wiggling her eyebrows. That meant only one thing. So let's translate what she meant about "having fun".

"_Are you having fun with Percy? I saw you dance with him! Did you like dancing with him? Ooh! You _so _like it! When are you two going to kiss? Did you two already kiss? Did you like it? Do you like Percy? I know you do._"

Yes, I understood what she meant even though I barely knew her for a day. And yes, she was rambling on questions about me and Percy.

"Sure…" I suggested. "We had fun…"

"Eep!" Silena squealed, jumping up and down.

Translation: "_So you two kissed?_"

"No." I told her.

"What? No what?" Percy asked me.

I rolled my eyes again. "Girl stuff. You won't understand, especially with that Seaweed Brain."  
"Really? Girl stuff? Who would've known that _THE _Wise Girl was involved with 'girl stuff'?" Percy faked a gasp.

"For your information, Seaweed Brain, I _am _a girl," I retorted, slapping the back of his head.

"Aww, nicknames!" Silena sighed dreamily.

"What's wrong with that?" Percy wondered, blinking his eyes like an idiot he is.

"Oh just stuff your face with some chips," I teased, taking a couple sips of my punch juice.

Percy rolled his eyes and wandered off to a crowd of people.

"So?" Silena grinned evilly.

"So what?" I asked slowly.

"So are you and Percy an item yet?"

I did a wonderful cartoon-like spit take. "_What?_" I practically screeched. It was a good thing the music was playing very loudly on American Idiot by Green Day. Nobody heard me but Silena.

"Are you and Percy an item yet?" Silena repeated, eying her boyfriend, Beckendorf who was chatting with Percy.

"Of course not! We're _just _friends," I clarified.

"–_now_," Silena corrected me. "Just friends _now_. Later, you'll be a perfect lovey-dovey couple like Charlie and I," she sighed dreamily again.

"No, friends _only_," I decided.

"For _now_," Silena corrected me again.

"Sure, sure," I waved off her comment.

"Uh-oh," I heard Silena murmur.

I looked over at what Silena was staring at. And "Uh-oh" was right. Percy was dancing. A slow song. With. The. Evil. Little. Witch, _Liana_.

I felt anger pour through my body. He should be dancing with _me_. _I'm _his date. Not _Liana_. So why's he dancing with her? I was supposed to protect Percy from girls like her, right? And I failed, right? But Percy looked _happy_. And he was _laughing _with her. Not me.

So maybe I wasn't trying to protect Percy, but I wanted Percy for myself? Was I…_jealous_? No, I can't be. I don't like Percy that way. Maybe I'm just jealous that he's with that witch instead of spending time with me as a friend. But I knew deep down, that wasn't the reason at all. Do I _like like _Percy? As in, a non-friend type of way?

"Anna?" I heard a voice. It wasn't Silena's. I turned to see Thalia looking at me with a worried face, standing beside Silena. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" I asked, but I realized my voice was cracking.

"You're crying, Annie," Silena told me softly.

I touched my cheek and realized that it was wet with tears.

"Anna? You okay? What's wrong?" Thalia asked again.

But before I could answer her, I was already gone. I rushed out of the Apollo's district and ran to the closest tree. I stopped there to take a breath. I hid behind the pine tree, trying to get myself to stop crying, but I couldn't. I kept sobbing, and I knew I couldn't stop. The only person who could get me to smile was Percy. As in the guy who's making me cry right now, which seems pretty pathetic and stupid to me, but it was true.

"Anna? Annabeth!" I heard Thalia's voice calling for me.

"Annie! Come out; come out where ever you are!" Silena shouted.

I didn't reply. I just cried loudly, trying to quiet myself so that they wouldn't find me. But I kept picturing Percy with that _Liana_ girl, laughing and looking all happy. All those loving facial expressions that Percy doesn't show to _me_, but _her_. I dreaded the feeling of being so completely useless, and not knowing what to do but sob.

"Annie!" Silena called out again.

"Over here!" I heard Thalia say.

I heard footsteps running towards me. "Annabeth!" they cried out. The footsteps grew louder and louder until I heard them catching their breath beside me. Silena and Thalia kneeled down next to me on both sides as I cried my eyes out. Even though I was surprised that a daughter of Aphrodite would kneel down on the dirt next to me, I continued to cry. I couldn't believe that someone who cares about hygiene so much would sit next to me in filthy soil to cheer me up, but I was still so upset with what I saw.

"Annie," Silena started. "Shh, it's alright."

"What happened, Anna?" Thalia asked me.

"I – I,"

"Come on, you can say it. It'll be okay," Thalia reassured me, and Silena nodded her head in agreement.

"I like Percy Jackson," I choked out in between my hiccupping and crying. And I realized that what I said was most definitely true. I like my the son of my mother's rival.  
I like that gods damn Percy freaking Jackson.

* * *

**Cliffhanger!~  
I'm so glad they've invented something like that. Ah...**

**Anyways, I finally finished chapter ten! And after all that dreaded homework D:  
I still haven't finished the homework I've gotten yesterday ;D  
But it's the weekends, so eh.  
I need to research...I don't like researching D:**

**Annnddd, Guess what, my awesome fans?  
****That's right! I didn't edit ;D  
Pfft, don't complain. Laziness is apart of my nature.**

**I'm listening to the song, Leave Me Alone by The Veronicas. Ever heard of it?  
Sounds good :3**

**And I've decided:  
I will update at least once a week, because you'll never know when homework will attack.  
So if I have a lot of homework, I'll still try and find time to update by the end of the week.  
It's easier that way :)  
****It'd be a disappointment if I was to update every few days if I don't have enough time for it.**

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Just by about thirty words ;) **

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(And yes, I changed the name again. It sounds better that way :D)**

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	11. Chapter 11: The Stolls Prank

**Disclaimer: Riordan owns it.**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Eleven**

Percy was dancing with Liana, stepping on her toes as they swayed. And every time he did, Percy would laugh nervously, and Liana would do the same, but it was bitter laugh. He didn't step on Annabeth's toes when they danced. But that was because Percy wanted to try his best to impress her, and Percy's mind wasn't into the dance with Liana at all. He was thinking about Annabeth the entire time. "_Dancing with Annabeth was more fun_," or "_Annabeth looks a billion times more beautiful on the glowing dance floor._" And whenever Percy tells her one of his stupid jokes, Liana wouldn't understand it at all.

"That was supposed to be a joke," Percy told her when she wasn't laughing at it. He was unsure if she found it funny, or doesn't get it at all, but Annabeth always did.

"Oh," Liana said, and then pretended to laugh, but Percy knew it wasn't a real one.

"_Why did she have to ask me to dance with her? Why didn't I just refuse? Mom told me to be a gentleman though. Maybe I should've stayed with Annabeth. Ugh, this is so boring,_" Percy thought to himself, but he pretended to keep smiling as if he was enjoying himself. And boy, he was a pretty good actor because Liana thought he like her. And Annabeth was watching them afar.

Percy looked around, searching for Annabeth in the small crowd of people at the snack table as he danced with Liana. She wasn't there anymore. He looked around the district but there was no sign of Annabeth at all. He started to worry and panic, wondering what might've happened to Annabeth.

"_Don't worry, she's probably in the washroom,_" Percy reassured himself. "_Make up or something? That's what girls do all the time_." But he knew Annabeth wasn't that type of girl.

That is, when he heard someone shout Annabeth's name, he knew something was definitely wrong. It could've just been his imagination, but he had to make sure.

"Uh, I need to go somewhere. I'll see you later, Liana!" Percy said hurriedly, and sprinted towards the person who he thought had screamed for Annabeth. He was also pretty relieved to run away from Liana's grip.

As he left the district, he was certain that there was something wrong, because he heard Silena's voice.

"Annie!" she shouted.

"Over here!" I heard Thalia yell.

I followed their voices, hoping to find Annabeth, and praying to the gods she's okay.

* * *

**Chiron's POV (Never guessed that, now did you?)**

I stood there talking to Malcolm in front of Athena's district, number six.

"Annabeth's settling in alright?" I ask.

"Yeah, perfectly fine," he grumbled.

"Is something wrong, Malcolm?" I asked politely.

"It's that Poseidon boy I'm worried about," he admitted, sighing exasperatedly. "Mom would be so angry at her. Annabeth seems like an awesome sister, but I don't want her to get in trouble, you know?"

"I see…" I mused to myself.

"Annabeth!" a random shout came out of nowhere. Funny how we were just talking about her. Malcolm and I shared a concerned look, wondering what could be wrong. "Annabeth!" he shouted again.

Malcolm's eyes widened. "That's Percy! I mean, the son of Poseidon!"

I recognized the voice now. "There could be something wrong. Hop on," I told him.

Malcolm jumped onto my back and I galloped over to the voice calling for Annabeth.

"I sure hope that son of Poseidon didn't do anything to her," I heard Malcolm growl under his breath.

I thought back on how Malcolm called Percy by his first name, then correcting himself to call him _the son of Poseidon_. I wondered why that was.

I've decided ignored his comment for now and galloped on the dirt pathway. We found Percy, not so far from district six, near the seventh district, the Apollo's. He spotted us and quickly ran up to us.

"Chiron! Malcolm!" Percy panicked. "Have you seen Annabeth?"

"No, is something wrong?" I asked, getting a bit worried.

"I'm not sure…" Percy started.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Malcolm says. "You were calling for Annabeth, and you don't know why or what happened?"

"You heard me? Never mind. I heard Silena and Thalia call for her. I thought something was wrong," Percy said.

"I'm sure she's fine, Percy," I calmed him down. "No monsters can enter this place." I avoided letting him know that monsters can enter when summoned…but I won't tell him that since it'd seem like he'd explode if I did right now.

"Why are you even worried about her, _Poseidon boy_?" Malcolm sneered. I knew that being stuck up was not anything like Malcolm, and I could tell he was acting even if Percy didn't.

"Look, you might hate me, but Annabeth's my friend, alright?" he says coolly, running his fingers through his hair, his fingers a bit jittery as if he doesn't have time for this. "I need to go find Annabeth. Thanks for trying to help, Chiron," he said sincerely. "Bye Malcolm!" And he ran off.

Malcolm frowned. "Is he oblivious that we're supposed to hate each other?"

"He probably just wants to try and make as much friends as possible here," I answered.

"Hey, Chiron?" says a voice that most definitely does not belong to Malcolm. Malcolm and I was a bit startled at first. I turned to see Nico hiding in the shadows. "Have you seen Thalia? I've been looking for her."

"Percy's looking for Annabeth. Maybe you should follow him. Thalia could be with Annabeth for all I know," Malcolm replied.

"Thanks. Bye Mal; bye Chiron!" he says, and shadow travelled away.

I sighed and shook my head. "If that boy continues to overuse his powers like that, he's going to pass out really soon," I said.

"But that's Nico. The guy that likes to show off," Malcolm smiled.

"From what I've heard from Silena and Katie so far, Percy seems to be quite the show off himself," I chuckled.

"He acts immature," Malcolm retorted.

"You need to think about it, Malcolm," I said. "Percy could be a great friend to you. Keep your friends close; keep your enemies closer."

Malcolm put on his thinking face and thought for a moment. "I can't be his friend, Chiron," he says.

"That's what you think. You _can _be his friend, like how Annabeth is Percy's friend," I said. "Her mother is Athena as well. You can't always use your brain for everything. Sometimes you need to follow your heart."

"I'm not an Aphrodite child, Chiron," Malcolm pointed out.

"Think about it, Malcolm." I scowled to myself.

"What's wrong?" asked the son of Athena, hopping off my back.

"Hm…Nothing. It's just that there're three different children from the Big Three, and they're all here at once. Something dangerous is stirring."

Malcolm nodded slowly. "I have to agree on that. We'll need to keep a close eye on them."

"I'll leave you be now," I decided. "I need to meet with Mr. D."

"Alright, bye Chiron," Malcolm said, and I headed towards the Big House.

Something is wrong. And having all three children from the Big Threes, that's just not right. Not right at all. I need to check with Apollo, the god of prophecies, and pray that the future won't be disastrous.

* * *

**Malcolm's POV (I bet you're just dying for Percy's point of view now, aren't you?)**

Chiron walked off leaving me by the Apollo's district. I thought silently of what he'd said. Should I be friends with Percy though? Mom would get angry. It's not the wisest choice. I then heard something nearby a tree. And there are a lot of trees out here. I walked over to the largest pine tree, and each step closer I take, the more crying I hear.

"Shh, shh, it's okay," I heard a voice.

"It's not okay, Thalia!" I heard Annabeth hiccup.

Who knew? Percy was right. Something _was _up. I moved through the bushes to see Annabeth, Silena and Thalia crouched down behind the huge tree.

"What happened?" I wondered, knitting my eyebrows together.

Annabeth shook her head, and wiped the tears away from her eyes, sniffling a bit. "It's nothing, Malcolm. I'm fine."

A rustling noise came from the bushes behind me, and we all turned to see who it was.

"Whoa," says Katie, throwing her hands up as if she was innocent. "I didn't know we were having a secret party behind a fat tree."

Thalia gave her a friendly glare, and gestured towards Annabeth, who hung her head down. You could literally feel the aura of depression around her.

"Oh. Annabeth? What's wrong, Ann?" Katie asked in a gentle voice. It's weird how girls can change their emotions so quickly.

Annabeth shook her head as if she doesn't want to talk about it. But for some reason, Thalia, Katie and Silena shot a look at me.

"Well?" Silena wondered.

"Well what? If Annabeth doesn't want to talk about it, then she won't talk about it."

"No, you doofus. _Leave_. This is a girl's situation here," Thalia rolled her eyes.

"Go! Shoo! Shoo!" Silena whacked my arm.

"Ow! Women are so weird," I muttered.

"He acts like Percy," Katie sighed. And that's a horrible insult to a son of Athena. Why in the world would I act like that – that – that _fish_.

Annabeth seemed to have heard and tears rolled down her cheeks again. I scowled.

"It's that Poseidon boy wasn't it?" I asked. "Is he the reason why you're crying? No wonder he's out there looking for you! Probably trying to make you feel worse, or –"

"Wait," Annabeth's voice cracked. "What'd you say?"

"Percy, I mean that son of Poseidon. He made you cry, right?" I said.

"No, after that," she replied.

"That he was looking for you?"

Annabeth stood up, but her legs were still a bit wobbly, so she held onto the tree trunk for support. "Why?"

I shrugged. "He says that he heard Silena and Thalia call for you, and thought something was wrong."

Annabeth wiped her tears again. And gave me a weird look. Then everyone else joined in.

"_What_? Why do you keep looking at me like that?" I complained.

"Go! Shoo!" Silena said again. "We need a girls talk."

"Leave already!" Thalia groaned.

"Girl's party! Bye-bye!" Katie says, and then shoved me off.

"Okay! Don't kill me!" I said after Katie pushed me away from the tree and down to the dirt path. I stood up and dusted the dirt off me and I walked away from their little group and towards my district. Sheesh. Who knew they could be such devils? My arm hurts.

I wondered if I should tell Percy where Annabeth is. He would want to know. But should I tell him? The girls want to talk about something private, which _I_ shouldn't even know about, and I'm a son of Athena. I shouldn't be interacting with the son of Poseidon. Psh, no. That's weird. Mom would be angry…

"Malcolm!" shouted a voice, and I flinched. The last person I wanted to talk to right now.

I turned to face Percy, and I put on my best frown.

"What?" I asked, sounding irritated.

"Have you seen Annabeth?" he asked me again. He was still fidgety and had a concerned expression on his face.

Nico popped up beside him. "Where's Thaalliiaa…?"

I looked over at Nico, then back at Percy with a questioning look.

"He got drunk on the way here," Percy sighed.

"Hermes' party?" I wondered.

"Yeah," he nodded his head. "I went to check if Annabeth was there, but she wasn't. The place was horrible. You won't believe what the Stolls did there. They–"

"I don't even want to know," I cut him off.

"Nice choice," he smiled. "But really, have you seen Annabeth anywhere?"

"_Okay, choose now, Mal,_" I thought to myself. "_Either tell Percy or-_"

"Yeah I saw her," I blurted out. Why did I say that?

Percy's and Nico's face lit up. "Really?" they asked.

"Was Thalia there?" Nico wondered. How'd he snap out of that drunken state so quickly? And without a hangover? This guy's strange… You know what? Big Three children are strange.

"Yeah, she was there," I answered.

"Well where are they?" Percy asked hopefully.

"Actually, they said they're having a 'girl talk' and shoved me off," I groaned with air quotes.

"Yeah, girls," Nico mused to himself.

"Nico, Thalia's a hunter," I said. "Why're you looking for her anyways? She had sworn off boys."

"Uh, you know. Cousins. Doing cousin stuff. With cousins," Nico stuttered. He peered over at Percy and pointed at him. "Yeah. You know, Thalia, Percy and I. Cousin stuff with cousins, my little nephew."

At this point, I was grossed out. "Please don't bring in our family tree," I begged.

"Our family has a tree?" asked Percy as if he doesn't understand, but I could tell he was kidding. "Ooh! Is it a Christmas tree?"

"You do realize that we're Greeks? We don't celebrate Christmas?" I asked.

"I do. We celebrate so that we get to eat a huge feast and open presents. I got a horse. Never rode on it until about a week ago, I think. But it ran away for some reason…" Percy says sadly.

"A horse ran away from the son of Poseidon? That's strange. Something's wrong," I said thoughtfully.

"Yeah. Strange. The horse man had his horse running away from him," Nico laughed.

"Chiron would be so angry at you for talking behind his back," Percy warned jokingly, and I couldn't help but hold back my laughter. Chiron's part horse? His back? Ran away? Got it? Ah, never mind. I don't expect you to.

Percy beamed. "See? I can be funny," he proved to Nico.

"You're funny because you're stupid," Nico countered.

I laughed harder. Hey, it's true.

"Pfft, oh yeah? Well you're stupid too. Yeah, that's right! I called you stupid!" Percy says proudly.

I rolled on the floor as I laughed at his horrible comeback.

"Stupid? Ooh, is that it, _Seaweed Brain_?" Nico smirked as Percy scowled. I laughed even harder if it was possible at what Nico called him. It was a good one. Creative at that too. "Oh right. I can't use that nickname because it's the pet name _Annabeth _gave you. Isn't that right, Lover Boy?"

Okay, I officially stopped laughing. I stood up and scowled.

"Lover Boy?" I asked.

"Annabeth's a _friend,_" he defended himself. "And it's not a pet name."

"Aw, yes it is," Nico says in a baby voice. It doesn't suit him though. It's weird. "You have a pet name for Annabeth too! What was it? _Wise Girl_?"

Percy's cheeks flared. "That's not a pet name. It's a _revenge _name. Annabeth called me Seaweed Brain, so I'd call her Wise Girl."

I was staring at him in awe. "You fail," I said. "Who are you? Grover?"

"Is Grover known for being the worst nicknamer?" Percy sighed.

"Yeah. Who name's their sheep Coffee or Enchilada or any name of food he ate for breakfast?" I chuckled.

"No wonder people keep saying that," he said. "Wait, enchiladas for breakfast?" Percy wondered.

"Yeah, that's Grover alright," Nico nodded.

"Say, weren't you at the Hermes' party before you came to the Apollo's?" Percy asked Nico.

"I hate Luke," Nico growled under his breath.

"I thought you said he was an awesome guy," Percy retorted.

"I changed my mind," Nico decided. "He's evil."

Percy and I exchanged looks. "Dude, what happened?"

"Luke…Thalia…Kill him…" was all I heard Nico mutter out.

"I think it's best to ignore him," Percy suggested. "He's in his delicate state right now," he whispered jokingly.

"I heard that!" Nico snapped.

"Now he's in his angry–"

But before Percy could finish, Percy was being strangled by Nico.

"Ack! Let go! Gahhak! Can't breathe!" Percy choked out. "Malcolm! Call 911!"

"We can't get the police here," I said watching, very amused. They put on a good show.

"Malcolm! Call Mr. D!" He corrected himself, and Nico hastily let go.

"I'm innocent," Nico declared.

"Says the guy who almost choked me to death," Percy scoffed. "What? Do you want me to live with your daddy? I sure as Hades don't!"

I stifled a grin. "Okay! Sheesh! You two bicker so much. Now what's with you and Annabeth, huh?"

Percy cocked his head to the side. "What'd you mean?"

I mentally face palmed myself. Is he acting or is he serious? I never thought there'd be anyone so stupid in this world.

"You and Annabeth. What are your status? Are you sure you're _'just friends'_?" I asked.

"Wha? No! I mean, yes! We're just friends!" Percy blushed.

I looked at him skeptically. In denial. I see…

* * *

**Travis Stoll's POV (Don't you just **_**love **_**me?)**

Katie left to go back to her house since it was getting late, and she didn't have dinner yet. I wanted to walk her back, but she says she'd be fine. Darn it, I wanted to follow. I love eating the food Katie makes. Her fruit salads tastes the best.

But since Katie suggested she walk back alone, I was stuck with Conner making out with Liana. Can somebody say "_Ew…_"? I thought so.

I coughed for Conner's attention, but he was still busy. So I coughed louder. He didn't seem to hear that either.

"Conner!" I shouted in his ear.

He looked up to me from Liana and blinked. "Oh hey, Travis. How long have you been here? What's going on?"

I rolled my eyes at him. Typical. So I went straight to the point. "Want to check out the aftermath of our destruction at our district?" I smirked.

"Oh yeah," Conner grinned.

"Why on earth would you destroy your own district?" Liana asked in disgust. I can't believe Conner was with this girl. Probably some sort of magic Hecate children did to charm him? They probably have the same skills as Aphrodite children, since that's how they get to Conner. Can somebody say "_Ew…_"? I thought so.

"We're just awesome like that," Conner says proudly.

"Well," Liana started in a supposed flirty way.

But before she could continue, I cut her off. "Let's go!" I said loudly, sounding enthusiastic, and quickly dragged Conner out of the party zone.

"Dude! What was that for?" Conner asked.

"Dude? Really?" I scoffed.

"Whatever. I can't wait to see Luke's face when he sees us!" Conner said excitedly.

"Probably gonna kill us, but this'll be so freaking awesome!" I added in.

Conner and I raced to district eleven, excited to see our leader's face. Ooh, this is going to be _good_. Who's our leader? Luke, obviously. Heh heh heh…

I'd like to say I won the race, but then I'd be lying. Stupid Conner. He beat me by a few seconds. It's unfair. But hey, at least I'm taller than him.

"Whoo! I win!" he rubbed it into my face, but I shrugged it off.

And the moment we stepped into the Hermes district, we burst out laughing. You wouldn't believe how wicked this place looks.

"Travis! Conner!" Luke fumed. "What did you _do_?"

Now, let me give you a short description of the place. Hilarious, disastrous, mess up, dirty, broken pieces of buildings scattered all over the floor, ruined, all except for mine and Conner's house. Our place was spotless. Okay, so yeah. We share a house. But it's big enough and that's all that matters. But that's not important. The important thing was that spiked punch and beer were spilt over the ground and dents were found in the houses. Bricks had been scattered everywhere.

"Well my dear brother," Conner started, and Luke glared at him. And he started to cower. "It's all Travis' idea."

"Oh, _sure_ it's all my idea. You were the one who suggested pranking this party," I countered.

Luke glowered at the both of us. "You two are _not _staying in this place tonight, got it? Go to some friend's place to crash or in the woods for all I care. You are _banned _to come back until this place is _completely _spotless!" he snapped.

"Whoa, dude. It was just a couple of Greek fire," I held my hands up in surrender.

"More like fifteen, but still," Conner chimed in. Nice going, Bro.

"Out! Chris will inform you once this place is clean," Luke growled.

"Okay, okay. Sheesh. See ya later, Bossy Pants," Conner rolled his eyes.

And with that happy note, Luke shoved us out.

"He's a _really _nice half-brother," Conner commented as we walked away. "Where should we spend the night?"

I shrugged. "I'm going to ask Katie if I could stay with her," I said.

"Cool! Let's go!" Conner said.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. No way. Katie would most likely let me stay if it's just me. If you tag along, the chances are _zero_," I disagreed.

"What? What about the Bro Code?" Conner whined.

I rolled my eyes. "Go ask Liana if you want."

"Hey, that's a pretty good idea!" Conner nodded his head. "See you tomorrow, Dude! School's gonna start too. You gonna ditch?"

"Nah, I'm walking to school with Katie," I decided.

"You're lame. Bye!" Conner said, and then sprinted away to find Liana.

I shook my head and headed towards district four. As I passed district seven, I found Percy, Nico, Grover, and Malcolm chatting.

"Hey!" I called out to them. They turned their heads to me and they all grinned except for Malcolm. He scowled.

"Is this another prank?" Malcolm asked, obviously irritated.

"What? No. Actually, I'm heading over to Katie's place. I got kicked out by Luke," I admitted.

"Dude, it's the Greek fire, isn't it?" Nico smirked, and we high-fived each other.

"You bet," I nodded. "Luke wasn't happy one bit.

"Say, where's Conner?" Grover asked. "Isn't he always with you?"

"Yeah, but I'm staying over at Katie's place until district eleven's spotless. Conner's going with Liana," I gagged.

Percy laughed. "I feel sorry for him," he says.

"Well, he seems to like her. I think it's magic. Hecate children. You can never be too sure of them," I said.

"Agreed," everyone else said in unison, and we all laughed.

"So, where'd the girls go? I thought Annabeth was always with you," I smirked at Percy. It was obvious that they like each other. They're practically flirting with each other every day.

Percy blushed. "Not always," he tried to counter. I could tell he's in denial.

"Annabeth's with Katie, Silena and Thalia," Malcolm told me.

"Huh? She's not at home?" I asked.

"No, she came across them and started hanging out," he shrugged.

"You know where they are? I need to ask her if I can stay at her house. I didn't exactly eat dinner yet either. Her salads are tasty," I grinned.

"Yeah, but I think they want 'girl time' with each other. They pushed me away for 'girl talk'," Malcolm frowned.

"Eh, who cares?" I rolled my eyes. "Lead the way."

"I'm not certain if they're still there though," Malcolm warned.

"Doesn't matter," Nico says. "Let's just find them. It's almost eight," he looked at his watch.

"Really? I didn't eat dinner yet either," Percy sighed. Then as if on cue, our stomach growled.

We all laughed at the perfect timing.

"Looks like none of us ate dinner yet," Malcolm says.

"Um, I may have had dinner," Grover said sheepishly. "I want some enchiladas!" he added.

"And coffee?" Percy offered.

"And coffee," Grover agreed.

"Dude, it's like, at night. And you want coffee? Do you want to stay up the entire night?" I chuckled.

Grover shrugged. "It tastes good."

We all shared another laugh until Malcolm decided to show us where the girls were. He took us to this huge tree by the Apollo's district and we walked behind it, finding five girls talking about gods-know-what.

"Hey," Percy greeted them, and they turned around to notice us with huge happy faces.

Alright, I'm curious now. What on earth were they talking about?

* * *

**Whew. I finally finished :D  
And yeah, I didn't edit again. Sorry xD  
But don't you just _love _the cliffhanger? The next chapter's going to be on the girl's point of view :)**

**I'm starving, I didn't have lunch yet...and it's like 5pm.**

**Over 4500 words _excluding _author's note :D  
I'm so awesome :3 **

**Vote on my poll! I've added another option! I just thought of it yesterday :3  
And don't worry if you've voted before, 'cause I remade a new one :D**

**Please REVIEW! Tell me what you think ;D **


	12. Chapter 12: Girl's Club

**Disclaimer: Hades, no. No, I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians. –sigh-  
Warning: I did not edit this either (Man, I need a beta-reader. But I don't feel like getting one either.)**

**Reviews: I've gotten a lot of weird ones lately.**

**Too answer some questions and comments (not naming anybody): **

**1. I'm still updating. Who said I stopped?**

**2. Yeah, I might add some more Taylor Swift songs. Might…**

**3. Nico, Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, Beckendorf, Silena, Katie, Travis, Conner, (a later Rachel [meh heh heh]), and ALL THE PJO characters are the same age except for Luke and Malcolm. Maybe some more characters later on; I haven't decided yet. Malcolm's younger by about a year, and Luke's older by five years, like in the books. Remember, this is AU. Wait, I don't think I mentioned that. Pfft, I did now. Okie dokie? :) **

**4. Yeah, lots of weird reviews…so weird it may be considered strange or insane, but thanks for the reviews anyways. :D**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Twelve**

_After Malcolm left_

"Okay! He's gone!" Katie assured the girls.

Thalia peeked from behind the pine tree and some bushes surrounding it. "Yeah, he's walking away," she added.

"Thanks the gods," Silena squealed. "You will not believe what happened! Well, it _was _kind of obvious…"

"What?" Katie urged, a lot more curious now.

"I…like Percy?" Annabeth squeaked.

Katie stared at her with wide eyes. "_Now _you admit it? Took you long enough!" she huffed.

"I wasn't that obvious, was I?" Annabeth sighed, still thinking of the dance Percy had with _Liana_. "Did Percy notice it then?"

"Let's face it," Thalia said. "He's oblivious."

"No, duh," Katie rolled her eyes.

"He doesn't notice things that are _right in front of his face_!" Silena grumbled.

"What does that mean?" Annabeth sniffled a bit.

"You're obviously his _soul mate_," she sighed dreamily.

Annabeth blushed bright vibrant red; so red that she could've been mistaken for a gigantic red strawberry. "I'm not his soul mate!" Annabeth tried to counter. "It's just a little crush, is all."

"Crush?" Silena say in disbelief. "When you two are together, you aura practically screams _love_," she exclaimed loudly.

It was really impossible that Annabeth's face could ever get any redder. "I do _not_! We only met about a week or so ago," she protested.

"Oh please," Thalia rolled her eyes. "She's not in love."

"_Thank you_!" Annabeth sighed loudly in relief that someone agrees with her.

"She's _falling _in love," Thalia finished.

"_I am not_!" Annabeth growled.

"Falling in love," Katie confirmed.

"Now what's with the sad face earlier?" Thalia tried to pry out.

"What? What sad face? Ooh…That sad face. Oh, I think I know what's with the sad face. Sad, sad face," Katie nodded to herself, confirming that whatever she was thinking of was the problem. Katie was there earlier at the party and had witnessed what had happened.

"Yeah…" Silena agreed, sighing.

"Uh, hello? Feeling left out here?" Thalia reminded.

Annabeth hugged her legs and buried her head in her knees, indicating that she doesn't want to talk about it. She started to feel tears rolling down her cheeks again. But she keeps screaming at herself in her mind that she was most definitely _not _falling for that Percy Jackson. _Like_, yeah sure, she'll admit it. But falling _in love_? No way. Just a teensy weensy crush. No big deal. It'll be _all _over soon, disappearing like a little ghost, and she'll forget all about it. Well, at least that's what she _thinks_.

"Stupid Seaweed Brain," she muttered.

"Someone mind telling me?" Thalia groaned, hating being out of the circle.

"Annabeth saw Percy dancing with Liana," Silena sighed again.

"Oh," Thalia said awkwardly. "That…sucks."

"But jealousy's part of love right?" Silena says, trying to make it all better.

"I'm _not _in love!" Annabeth choked out, all red again.

"Exactly, Silena! She's _falling _in love. Remember?" Thalia corrected.

Annabeth groaned in frustration. They just wouldn't listen to her.

"Wait," Katie said all of a sudden. "You three didn't see Percy run off?"

Annabeth's head almost immediately popped up. "Huh?"

"Well, at the party when Percy was dancing with Liana, Percy was searching around the room for something," Katie shrugged. "Malcolm just said that Percy was looking for you, right? Maybe he was trying to find you in the party."

"He probably just danced with her because she might have asked him, and he wants to be a gentleman so he said yes," Silena assumed. "He's a prince, right?"

"A what?" Thalia and Katie exclaimed.

"Percy's the prince of Atlantis of the mortal world," Silena said proudly, happy that one of her friends was famous.

"Really?" Katie asked.

"Mmhm," Silena nodded.

"What? So _that's _why his name sounded familiar. Wait. Aw, I don't have to be nice to him, do I?" Thalia whined, feeling upset that Percy's royalty and she's not.

"Actually, he doesn't want to feel 'special', which is why he didn't tell you he was a prince," Annabeth replied, sighing sadly as she thought of Percy.

"Oh goody! I can still beat him up when I feel like it! Which is every time I see his face. But hey, that proves I can control myself," Thalia grinned, and Annabeth chuckled a bit. Then a bit sad again because it reminded her of Percy's sense of humor.

"_Anyways_," Katie coughed for attention. "Percy seemed like he was looking around the crowds in the district for you–,"

"He probably wants you to save him from dancing with that witch," Thalia snickered, and Annabeth tugged a smile on her lips thinking of little helpless Percy wanting to run away from Liana.

"Thank you very much for interrupting," Katie glared icily at Thalia. "Anyways, when he realized he couldn't find you, he looked pretty calm."

Annabeth sulked hearing that. "_I guess he doesn't care,_" she mentally sighed.

"But his eyes seemed to be saying something else. You could see it all the way from the tables," Katie continued. "He was _definitely _worried. And then a couple minutes later, you could see him all sweaty," she laughed. "Oh, and you should've seen him step on Liana's toes as they danced."

Annabeth tugged up another smile. That was exactly how Percy would act like. "_Did Percy purposely step on her toes?_" she wondered.

"Then he said something to Liana and sprinted off before she could reply," Katie said between laughs. "It was golden!"

"Oooh, then Percy must've started looking for you," Silena grinned.

Thalia nodded in agreement, making Annabeth's face very red again. "That sounds a lot like Percy. Exactly like his first impression when I met him. Dumb, stupid, and sweaty," she says laughing, and Annabeth couldn't help but laugh along with the rest of the girls. "And caring too," Thalia added when the laughing died down. "When he came back from the river?"

Annabeth smiled thinking back on yesterday night. "Yeah, I remember," she said, trying her best not to sound dreamy.

"What happened?" Silena asked curiously, shifting closer to the group to listen carefully.

"What'd he do? What'd he do?" Katie asked impatiently like a three-year old.

"Annabeth and Percy got into a fight because Percy ate the rest of their food supply when they were camping, which was a freaking marshmallow by the way, so Percy went fishing to get Annabeth somethin' to eat," Thalia says.

"Aww," Silena and Katie cooed with silly grins on their faces.

"Shut up," Annabeth says, her face burning as the rest of the girls laughed.

Then the bushes started to rustle again.

**Annabeth's POV (since it's easier)**

The bushes started to move again. Oh gods, I hope it wasn't Malcolm eavesdropping on us. If he did, then he'd know I like Percy.

A head popped out showing us a familiar face with green hair and eyes with an elfish feature.

"Juniper!" we all exclaimed in unison.

"Hi! Whatcha girls talking about?" Juniper asked.

"Is anybody behind you?" Thalia wondered.

"No. Why?"

"Nothing," Silena shrugged innocently. "Annabeth just finally admitted that she likes Percy."

And then cue squealing. All the girls, but me. Seriously, even if I've known Thalia for about a day or so, I don't think she's ever been this girly in her entire life. Which reminds me of something…

"Say, where's your boyfriend?" Katie asked Juniper.

"Oh, he wandered off to find the rest of the boys. This _is _my tree you know?" Juniper says.

"Whoops…" we all muttered, staring at the 'fat tree' as Katie had put it.

"Doesn't matter," Juniper waved it off. "You know, at first I thought you and Percy were already dating," she told me.

"What?" I practically screeched. I hope no one else heard me.

"What?" Juniper asked innocently. "You two look like a couple."

"I had to tell her that you two weren't together for her to realize it," Katie giggled, and everyone else but Juniper and I laughed along. We were both too embarrassed to say anything.

"It's not my fault I thought they were together!" Juniper exclaimed with a red face. "_Anybody _would've thought of that!"

Everybody calmed down and agreed with Juniper. "It's true," says Thalia. "I thought Percy was her boyfriend when I first met them!"

And cue laughter again.

"I'm right here you know?" I blushed.

"Sorry, sorry," Silena apologized.

"But there's no need to worry about Liana. I'm pretty sure he doesn't like her at all," Katie added.

"Liana? The Hecate girl?" Juniper asked.

And so we told her the whole story and our assumption of how Percy was…you know, looking for me and all… Don't laugh. It's not funny. I'll murder you. Anyways, after all the laughing and…well, more laughing, we were finished (thank the gods) with the story. The very incredibly massively long story that makes my face flares up. Stupid story…I never thought of the day I'd say something like that.

"Aw, that's so cute!" Juniper commented.

Urgh! No! Shut up! Now my face feels all hot and sweaty. Even more. Just a crush. Just a crush. Just a freaking _crush_! I need to change the subject somehow…Ugh, I feel horrible for saying this. I might have to apologize to Thalia after. Maybe.

"So you're a hunter right?" I asked Thals.

"Obviously," Thalia rolled her eyes. "Lieutenant at it too," she pointed at her silver circlet on her head.

"And you're supposed to swear off boys, right?" I continued.

Thalia's eyes widened and the rest of the girls broke into grins. They all knew where this was going… I'm starting to feel evil.

"Y-Yeah…" Thalia says cautiously.

"So what's up with you and Nico?" I finished, smiling feeling very satisfied.

"Uh, er… Cousinly stuff. We're cousins," Thalia stuttered. "Catching up…with cousinly stuff. Just, hanging around together, as cousins…Being cousins…Cousins…"

We all raised an eyebrow at her suspiciously. We were all aware of a bead of sweat rolling down her face.

"Cousins, alright! Stop staring at me like that!" Thalia defended.

"Oh…So you did you notice Liana checking him out?" Silena asked her.

"_What_?" Thalia shrieked. "I mean, not that I care. I have to look out for my cousin, right? From those ugly little whores…"

"Is that jealousy I see?" Katie smirked, wiggling her eyebrows. I think Travis has rubbed off on her.

"Wh-Pfft, What? No! Why would I be jealous?" Thalia stammered.

"Oh, I don't know…Where's Nico now?" I asked Thalia.

"Um, he was by the ice cream stand when I went over to you at the snack bar…" Thalia faltered.

"I saw him dancing with Liana before I left the party too," Juniper says. Whoa…either she's an awesome actor or she's telling the truth.

"_What?_" Thalia screeched again. Alright, so now I really regret having Thalia sit next to me. I feel like my ears are going to pop off. "I mean, not like I care or anything…"

"And then the part where Nico kissed her…" Juniper added. Yeah, she's lying. Doesn't seem like it, but Nico would _so _not kiss Liana. It looked pretty obvious that he liked Thalia.

"_What_?" Thalia, once again, screeched into my ear. "Alright, that's it. I'm going to beat up that dead boy into pulp!" she shouted, standing up.

"I was lying," Juniper says coolly. Does she know that Thalia can beat up people in less than three seconds?

Instead of an angry, furious Thalia yelling at Juniper like I've expected, Thalia's face was bright red from embarrassment and sat back down silently. "So, uh, what's with you and Grover?"

Ah, the subject changing card. I just used that. Too bad it doesn't work anymore…

"I'm pretty sure Nico likes you," Juniper says, ignoring Thalia's question. "_More _than a cousin."

"Well Nico and I are friends too, right?" Thalia said.

"_More _than friends," Katie added.

"Er…Buddies?" Thalia suggested.

"I'm pretty sure that means the same thing," I told her.

"I'm a hunter!" Thalia protested. "No boys at all!"

"Then why were you and Nico together at the party?" Silena scoffed.

"We were going as cousins," Thalia says smoothly.

"Thalia?" I asked. "You're overusing the whole 'cousins' idea."

"But we _are _cousins," she continued to argue.

"As an excuse to get close to Nico," Silena smiled sweetly at her.

"Am not!"

"Are too!" we all said.

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Okay, this is getting nowhere," I said before they all said, "Are too!" again.

"Nico and I only think of each other as _cousins_," Thalia huffed, and I could detect a bit of sadness in her voice, although it was covered up with anger.

"Then I dare you to not hang out with Nico for an entire day, starting from tomorrow," says Katie.

"So what? We're playing truth or dare now?" Thalia scoffed.

"Ooh! Let's play!" Silena suggested. "It's Thalia's turn now!"

"Fine, I'll ignore and avoid Nico at all times tomorrow. But you never said anything about today," Thalia says.

"Because you _want _to hang out with him?" Katie smirked evilly. Yeah, Travis totally rubbed off on her.

"Oh, don't tease her," Juniper says before Thalia could say something back to her. "Let's just start the game!"

"Fine," Thalia agreed. "Katie, truth or dare?"

"Truth," Katie says thoughtfully. "I'm not hiding anything."

"Did you date anyone before Travis?" she asked.

"Nope!" Katie says proudly.

"Swear on the Styx?" Thalia asked disbelievingly.

"I swear on the Styx," Katie says, and thunder was heard not so far away. Katie didn't turn to dust, so she told the truth.

"Fine, your turn," Thalia says a bit way too grouchily.

Katie smiled at Thalia's anger. "Silena! Truth or dare?"

"Truth," Silena says, inspecting her nails.

"Hm…" Katie thought. "What's the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to you?"

"What embarrassing thing?" Silena asked innocently.

"Oh come on," Katie rolled her eyes. "_Everybody_ has at least _something_ embarrassing happen to them before."

Silena pouted. "Fine. The most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to me was the time when I helped out this Apollo girl dress up for her date, and I seemed to have messed up with her outfit…and her date didn't end so well."

"That's it?" Juniper asked, and Silena nodded her head.

"Wow. I can't believe that's the most embarrassing thing that's happened _ever_ in your life."

"Okay fine!" Silena says. "The girl says that she was going to a circus for a date, but I misunderstood it for helping out at the circus. So I may have dressed her up as a clown?"

Okay, the laughing was...I'm losing my words, but it was hilarious!

"Stop laughing!" Silena demanded, pouting.

"Alright, sorry, sorry," I said.

"Annabeth," Silena says. Uh-oh. I know what's coming… "Truth or dare?"

"Um…Dare," I said. Oh gods, what was I thinking? This is _Silena_. She's going to make me do something with Percy! Ergh, my face is heating up again. I hate this. "Wait! No! I mean truth!" I quickly covered up.

"Too late! Dare it is!" Silena clapped happily. And all around me was filled with "Oooh…"s or "Good luck with that, Annabeth"s with worried faces. Fine, so only Juniper said that with a worried face. Everyone else was grinning like a monkey. Damn them.

"I dare you to kiss Percy on the cheek once you see him," Silena sang happily.

"C-Cheek, right? That's it?" I said, struggling the words out. It feels like I've dived into a volcano. There can't be any more than this, right?

"Nope! One more thing!" Silena says as I groaned.

"I spy with my little eye, the boys heading right this way!" she says.

"What?" the rest of us screeched quietly, turning around to see if they were really there. And yes, they were. Meaning Percy included. Damn, and Malcolm's leading the group. Great.

"And for tiny little more detail for your dare? You have to confess that you like him," Silena says proudly.

"No," I said; as if that was the worst thing that could ever happen to me. Which it is. "I'm a daughter of Athena! He's the son of Poseidon! I can't!"

Silena pouted. "Fine, but you have to tell him _one day_. Right now is just a kiss on the cheek," Silena says.

"Fine," I agreed, but I couldn't help but feel a little giddy inside.

Juniper then randomly started to laugh, and we gave her questioning looks.

"What?" Katie asked her.

"Wouldn't it be funny if we had them join our little game of truth or dare?" Juniper grinned widely.

We then all started to imagine the scene. And yes, I had to agree with her that it would be funny. Especially with Travis Stoll, one of the Kings of Pranks of this town. And it would be hilarious watching Percy doing something stupid. Again.

Percy…That reminds me. I still have to kiss him. Well, obviously on the cheek. And for some reason I'm feeling a bit nervous, but a bit excited too. But you know, small crush. It'll disappear. I'm sure it will. It better… I can't risk falling in love with my best friend who's the son of my mother's rival, who happens to be a goddess.

But it's _Percy Jackson_. I don't even know what to think about him anymore. Were they right? Am I falling for him? Or is it really just a crush? Has to be a crush. I've only known him for less than a couple of weeks. I can't risk losing our friendship either. But just a small kiss on the cheek. And then I'll forget all about it.

"Hey," says a familiar voice. I looked up into those dazzling green eyes and grinned.

I may not know if I'm falling for Percy Jackson or not, but all I know right now is that I'm happy just being with him. And that's all I need right now.

* * *

**I know, I know, it's not much. But I've been super busy with...Uh...Pokemon Black and White (I have both but I'm currently playing Black...)  
Pfft, it's fun okay? Every kid on Earth deserves fun :3  
I still didn't finish my homework yet...Eh...  
And yeah, I didn't edit this piece either. The next chapter will be on Olympus, I think. Depends on my mood. If I'm happy, then yeah, it might be on Olympus. But if I'm feeling grumpy, I might skip the Olympus part and down onto Truth or Dare, maybe. Or I'll just forget about it. :D (Doesn't mean I'm abandoning this. I just won't write it until I feel like it...Some author I am, huh?)  
**

**And I think I'm changing my mind about Jasper (Jason x Piper)... Depends if Riordan wants them together. I'm more with Leo x Piper. Like the next Beckendorf and Silena :D  
Plus their personalities are more alike. Jason's more serious. But yeah. If Rick decides to make it Jasper in the end, I'll root for it :)**

**Annnyywaayys, Review, review, review!  
More reviews the better~ I'll write more :D  
I just need the extra motivation. **

**Thanks for reading~~  
- C-Nuggets N.L**

**PS. OMFG. I almost forgot. I'm redoing that poll thingy again. Adding a new idea~ And I have a SUPER good feeling about it. It's not about halfbloods, but SUPERHEROS. Lame, but yeah. Interesting :D  
**

**ANNNNNNNNDDD: I was wondering if I should post a chapter up for each of the ideas I've thought about? So you readers can get the feeling of the story :)  
But, I'll only update one chapter out of the entire stories per week. So whichever ones has the most reviews is the one I'll update, kays? I'm going to stick with that idea :D  
But I'm not writing Step Two: Dared to School or Fake Marriage. I'm not writing Fake Marriage because I've decided it will be apart of Step Two: Dared to School. And I'm not writing that one because it's the sequel of this. That'd be a spoiler D:**

**WAIT: Or, instead of reviews, I could just use the poll instead? And whichever has the most votes would be the one I'll update.**

**Agh, either way, review and tell tell me what you think, okay?  
Wait, no, actually, I'm going with the polls idea. Pfft, I'm too lazy to backspace everything and rewrite, okay?  
But, still, REVIEW! And don't forget about my poll~~~ **


	13. Chapter 13: Not So Wonderful Spies

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO. Live with it.**

**And by the way, I think I almost had a mini heart attack. I didn't really check how much reviews I've received in total. And when I realized it reached over a hundred, it felt like my eyes were about to pop out… And I've got over 4500 hits and 1500 visitors for this story. So I want to thank all of you awesome viewers out there!**

**Oh, and I just accidently poked my eye with my finger. It hurts. I know, random.**

**And I'll try my best to update as much as possible! 'Cause it always takes a day for me to finish a chapter. I could've finished seven chapters a week. But I'm just so busy. Reading and stuff… Pfft! I'll work on it as much as possible. I think. I can't guarantee it'll happen though.**

* * *

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Thirteen**

_**Olympus**_

The three judges up on Olympus were watching over every single demigod all the way in town. Town Half-Blood, obviously. Aphrodite, being the mischievous match-maker she is, was paying very close attention to Percabeth. Meaning Percy and Annabeth, obviously. It was her ridiculous mash up name for them.

Artemis on the other hand, was glowering at Nico from above, wanting to disintegrate him. But Aphrodite made an official rule that no one will kill or turn any demigods into whatever they want. She was extremely upset when she found out that Nico likes Thalia, even if he's still in denial.

And Hestia you ask? Well, she was happily taking a cozy nap by the hearth next to Aphrodite. In other words, she wasn't really participating at all. Aphrodite only needed her to be a judge because she doesn't have any children. And so she could save the trouble of finding another good judge.

So Aphrodite and Artemis were huddled around a large floating Hephaestus television, watching over the half-bloods in the throne room. And they weren't agreeing on anything at all.

"Aren't Percy and Annabeth so cute together?" Aphrodite squealed.

"Annabeth would make a good hunter," Artemis mused. "But Percy seems like a slob."

"What? Don't make Annabeth a hunter! She needs to fall in love with Percy! And I was talking about _both _of them. Not each person in particular. You're supposed to talk about a _couple_. Don't you understand _love _at all?" Aphrodite huffed.

"No," Artemis answered bluntly.

Aphrodite gaped at her and they fumed silently as they paid close attention to the screen.

"Does that son of _Hades _have a crush on my lieutenant?" Artemis hissed as they watched the party at the Hermes district.

"Aw, I can't believe I haven't thought of that pairing! Two children of the Big Three! Hades versus Zeus! And Thalia's a hunter! Cute forbidden love!" Aphrodite says. "It's like Percy and Annabeth," she added. "Poseidon versus Athena. Ooh, this will be a tough choice."

Aphrodite then switched the channel to the Apollo's district.

"Excuse me?" Artemis hissed. "I will not have one of my hunters, let alone my _lieutenant _fall in love with some disgusting _boy_."

"You're boring," Aphrodite pouted over the quiet snoring of Hestia. She was curled up in a ball in a seven-year old form. "Ooh! Look! It's that magic girl! The magic girl!" Aphrodite exclaimed.

"You mean Hecate's child?" Artemis frowned.

"Yes! Her! Look! Look! Annabeth's all jealous! Shhh! Quiet! I want to watch this part. It's getting a lot more interesting," Aphrodite demanded.

"I didn't even talk yet," muttered Artemis.

"Hey, hey, hey!" shouts a voice, entering the throne room.

The two goddesses turned to face Apollo. Artemis instantly frowned as soon as she saw his horrid face.

"What do you want?" Artemis hissed at him.

"Whoa, whoa. Calm down lil' sis. Now, I just want to ask who's at the top of the best demigod couple list right now. One of my kids, eh?" Apollo gave a blinding grin.

"No," the goddesses deadpanned, and Apollo gaped.

"Wha-? What about Mary and that Ares kiddo?" Apollo asked.

"No," they repeated.

"We're not changing our answers yet. Now shoo!" Aphrodite ordered. "Get out of here!"

The love goddess summoned a mallet and started to swing it like mad.

"Whoa! Damn! Freaky Aphrodite on the loose!" Apollo shrieked, skipping away hurriedly.

"I need to try that sometime," Artemis stared at the spot where Apollo was in awe.

"Works all the time!" Aphrodite shrugged, and accidentally swung the mallet at the television.

"_**APHRODITE!**_" Artemis screeched so loud that all of Olympus and Earth could be heard. Aphrodite massaged her ears from the noise. "What have you done?" Artemis fumed calmly.

"Whoops," was all she could reply.

"Hmmm?" Hestia mumbled. "What happened?"

"She broke the television!" Artemis exclaimed, and Hestia didn't react much. She probably had seen it coming.

"Oh, I'll just get my husband," Aphrodite shrugged. "He'll fix it!" They all gave Aphrodite a disbelieving look. "What? Just because I cheat on him doesn't mean he won't still do whatever I tell him to do. Sheesh," and with a snap of a finger, Aphrodite disappeared with the magical television to her husband's workplace.

* * *

**Town Half-Blood**

There was Athena, peeking behind some bushes and trees, spying on her daughter and her friends. And yes, she had also witnessed her daughter admit that she likes that dreaded Poseidon boy. And she was filled with rage. But if she stepped out of her hiding spot, that would be a reckless move. So she decided to stay in the shadows for a while longer.

And here was what the kids were doing: They were playing the worst game invented in the entire universe: Truth or Dare.

"Hey," says a voice. It belonged to the person Athena so dearly wanted to strangle.

Annabeth beamed at him with happiness, even though her eyes were a bit puffy and red with tear stains on her cheeks.

Percy noticed this and kneeled down next to her and brushed his fingers on her cheek. "You okay? What happened?"

Annabeth nodded her head. "I'm okay," she whispered softly to him. She realized she sounded dreamy and snapped herself out of it. "Um," she hesitated, but kissed Percy on his cheek for the dare.

Athena's eye twitched at the scene.

Percy's blushed. "Uh…" was all he said.

"Um, a friend kiss," Annabeth says quickly, completely flustered. Her head was suddenly getting very dizzy.

"R-Right. Friend kiss," Percy stammered as he agreed, although he sounded a bit disappointed.

Malcolm raised an eyebrow at the two, not sure if he should leave them alone. After all, Percy doesn't seem like the person to hurt his friends. That or he's just a super good actor.

Thalia grinned at the wonderful dare Silena, the master-mind, had dared Annabeth to do.

But Silena on the other hand just frowned. A friend kiss? That's a lame excuse, Silena thought to herself.

Nico was hidden behind Travis, trying his best to hide his chuckle.

Juniper was smiling at Grover and Katie was wondering why Travis was here and when he started to hang out with Percy. Percy seemed too nice to actually play a prank on someone like Travis would do. Then again, she didn't know Percy that well either.

Grover was sniffing the air for something. "I smell something powerful," he says.

Athena silently cursed herself, but then remembered that she casted a spell to remove her powerful scent before entering the scene. There must be another god somewhere, Athena thought to herself.

Poseidon was hiding in the thick bushes and trees parallel to Athena's hiding spot. Whoops, Poseidon thought quietly. He forgot to go to Hecate and remove his scent from demigods, satyrs and nymphs. Pretty nymphs, Poseidon mentally said, ogling at some of them skittering from one tree to another behind him.

"Something powerful?" Travis wondered, but shook his head to ignore whatever the problem was and concentrate on asking Katie something. "Katie? I need a place to stay in. Luke kicked me out of the Hermes district," Travis told her.

Katie groaned. "The Greek fire?" Travis nodded.

"You can stay at my place. I've got three bedrooms," Percy suggested.

Travis' ears perked up. "Son of Poseidon, right?"

"That's right," Percy nodded.

"Oh cool! I never saw what it looked like inside!" Travis hopped with joy. "I can stay at your place?" Percy nodded again. "Thanks, man!"

"Just don't trash the place," Percy warned.

"No problem! Thanks again, dude! Although, Conner's looking for a place to stay too. But…I wouldn't trust him about the whole trashing the place thing," Travis thanked again.

"He's going to have to search for a place himself then," Percy muttered.

As if they've rehearsed this before, their stomachs growled loudly from hunger.

"What's to eat?" Grover wondered, forgetting about the powerful scent.

Katie sighed and stood up, brushing off the dust on her dress. "Well, we can all come over to my place to eat."

"_YES_!" Travis cheered, and everyone stared at him weirdly. "Er, great, I mean," he corrected himself.

"We can play Truth or Dare after!" Silena suggested, and Thalia, Katie, and Annabeth inwardly groaned.

Percy held out a hand to Annabeth and helped her up. Nico was still standing behind Travis; his arms crossed trying to stay alert from whatever the powerful aura was. Thalia was a teensy bit disappointed that Nico didn't help her up like Percy did to Annabeth, but didn't argue. Katie led the entire gang to district four, and Annabeth's face was red because she noticed how Percy didn't let go of her hand yet.

Athena spotted Poseidon sneak out of the bushes to follow them and instantly realized that he was the idiot who didn't hide his scent.

"Stupid Barnacle Beard," she muttered under her breath, and sprinted to catch up with him.

Poseidon, not being the sneakiest person, stumbled over a pebble. The kids turned around, hearing the "Hmmrfpfhh!" sound, but found nothing and continued to walk.

Athena snatched Poseidon, covering his mouth with her hand, hiding behind another tree before they could hear the loud thumping sound of Poseidon's fall that could ruin their cover.

"You stupid _Fish-Head_," she hissed at him quietly, removing her hand. "What did you think you were doing?" she demanded, pointing her index finger at him menacingly.

"Spying," he replied smoothly, as if he never stumbled over a freaking piece of rock.

"More like tripping," Athena grumbled, poking her head out of the prickly pine needles to check if the coast was clear. The demigods had already entered the fourth district.

"What are you even doing here?" Poseidon wondered. "It's against the rules to interfere with the game."

"What are you doing here?" Athena snapped back at him.

"What am I doing here? You think I follow rules?" Poseidon scoffed.

"No, I never expected you to," Athena rolled her eyes.

"You never answered my question. Why're you here? You were never a rule breaker," Poseidon asked.

"I need to look after my daughter," Athena replied. "From that awful son of yours," she added.

"Hey," Poseidon protested. "Percy's awesome!"

"Sure," she muttered in reply. "Now do you want to follow or not? Come on!" she growled.

Athena grabbed Poseidon's sweaty hands and quietly dragged him to district four. The night was still young, but it was dark enough for others to not notice them. Well, a few nymphs winked at Poseidon, and he waved at them with that 'stupid smile' is what Athena would call it. Athena detected the flirting nymphs and glowered at them until they disappeared.

"You ruin the fun," Poseidon grumbled.

"Did you come here to play with nymphs or spy on our kids?" Athena asked impatiently.

"You're right as usual," Poseidon mumbled. "Spying on our kids sounds more fun."

They tiptoed to a large building with a nice patio surrounded by the most beautiful flowers. Tulips, roses, daisies, you can name it. There were even moonlace flowers that could only be found on Calypso's island, Ogygia, and it sparked brightly in the moonlight.

"Whoa," says Poseidon in awe. Athena slapped his jaw shut.

"Shut up," she whispered, and led him behind the house over at a large window that showed the dining room. The boys were in their seats chatting while the girls were busy making the dinner. Athena frowned at the scene. "Boys are so useless," she muttered.

"Your son is there too, you know?" Poseidon pointed out with an amused grin on his face.

Athena scowled. "I know that. At least he's smart. And it's why Annabeth's my favourite child. She's hardworking, intelligent and independent. Unlike your son."

As if on cue, Percy stood up and headed over to the kitchen to help the girls with dinner, and Annabeth smiled gratefully at him.

"You were saying?" Poseidon chuckled.

Athena slapped the back of his head. "Just shut up. Do you want to get caught?"

"No," Poseidon answered, smile still on his face.

"Exactly. Now shush," says Athena, very irritated with Poseidon.

They were kneeling under the window, peeking to take a look every few seconds. Athena realized that their fingers were still intertwined to each other and her face reddened a bit. Then she noticed that they were sitting incredibly close to each other. So she let go of his hand and shuffled away from him a bit. She didn't want him to think they were friends now or something. They were eternal rivals; nothing more.

* * *

**Katie's House in Town Half-Blood**

Percy had gotten up to help Annabeth and the girls because he found it unfair if he let them do all the work. Plus, it would make him feel guilty too if he didn't help out.

"Hey Annabeth," says Percy with a contagious smile, causing Annabeth to smile back. "Mind if I help out?"

"That'd be great," Annabeth says. "Wait. You do know how to cook, right?"

Percy scratched the back of his head. "I only know how to bake…"

Annabeth chuckled. "Really now?"

"Yeah, my mom taught me. We used to bake blue cookies together," Percy sighed.

Annabeth was curious about cookies being blue, but she knew now wasn't the right time to ask him about it. "It's okay, Seaweed Brain. We'll see your mom again," she comforted him.

Percy smiled when she said, "we'll" instead of "you'll". "Yeah," Percy agreed.

"Annabeth! Percy! Are you going to help us?" Thalia yelled.

"Coming! Coming!" Annabeth shouted back. And yeah, the kitchen was that big. "Percy? If you want, we can make some of those blue cookies you mentioned. That is, if you want me to make it with you. Or if you want to make it at all…" Annabeth stuttered a bit. Percy and his mom made the cookies together in the first place, and Annabeth thought maybe he only wanted it to be that way. Just him and his mom. Annabeth thought she wasn't all that important. Like a third wheel.

But Percy gave her a toothy grin. "Can we?" he asked eagerly.

Annabeth was surprised by his reaction, but nodded her head a bit shyly.

"Great! Hey, Katie? Where do you keep the flour?" Percy called out.

"Right there, Blindy!" Katie shouted back at him.

"Oh. I got it; I got it!" Percy says, and Annabeth smirked at his stupidity.

The boys at the dining table were secretly discussing about the Truth or Dare game. Travis snickered. "We should do one for Percy and Annabeth," he says.

"Warning! Warning! Aphrodite kid!" Nico says dramatically, and Travis punched his arm. "Oof! Hey!"

"Seriously? That's a major insult to me," Travis grumbled. "Wait. That means I'm insanely handsome," he smirked. "Well then, this Aphrodite kid's going to give you a dare or truth about Thalia later."

Nico's eyes widened. "W-We're cousins!" he protested.

"Who said Travis meant it about that?" Malcolm says with an innocent smile. "The dare and truth could've been in a friendly and cousinly way."

Nico's eye twitched as Grover's stomach growled again. "I knew I should've packed some tin cans," he muttered to himself.

Travis randomly sighed.

"Whoa, what's up with you?" Malcolm wondered.

"I feel horrible for ditching Conner," Travis replied. The boys all raised an eyebrow at him suspiciously. Then they all burst out into laughter.

"Okay, okay, we're changing the subject," Malcolm says, then looked over at the girls to make sure they weren't listening. "Truth or Dare, remember?" he whispered.

They nodded their heads in agreement. "For Juniper, can we not do a really life-killing dare?" Grover hoped.

"If we agree to that, we can't give any of those kind of dares to Thals either. 'Cause she's my cousin and all," Nico added.

"And Katie," Travis says.

"And Annabeth. I'm not letting you guys let my new half-sister to do anything dangerous," Malcolm said.

The boys then frowned, obviously thinking how boring it would be if it was like that.

"Nah," they all said in unison.

And they continued their horrible brain-storming session.

* * *

**Olympus**

"I got it fixed!" Aphrodite cheered. "I hope we didn't miss anything."

"Don't worry; I'm sure we didn't miss a lot," Hestia reassured her.

"Yeah, it didn't take long for it to be fixed," Artemis agreed.

Pfft, they _did _miss a lot.

* * *

**I finished Chapter thirteen~ Without editing again. Hopefully, there aren't much mistakes...  
Crud. I just remembered that I've got homework. Eh. I'll finish it tomorrow...  
I feel like maybe I should just finish this fanfiction before starting a new one. What'd you think?  
If you don't agree, review and tell me! And vote for my poll :)****  
And yeah, it's a new one. Again. :D **

**But if you want me to stick with the old plan of updating a chapter of each of my ideas for a fanfiction so you would get the taste of it, tell me in a review or PM, and I might just do that. INCLUDING a chapter for this story. I feel so nice now. But that thanks to my wonderful readers! So many reviews, hits, and visitors!**

**Review, review, review! I love getting reviews! I'm so happy I got over a hundred~  
Thank you all so much! **

**- C-Nuggets N.L**

**'Till next time, my readers!**

**PS. Incredibly sorry that this wasn't as long as the previous chapter. I'll try my best to make it longer, but I feel like this chapter's the best I've written. I feel like I'm gaining back my writing skills! I thought I was losing it. I felt the power of writing within me fade away...but it reappeared! Maybe it's because of the reviews :)  
**

**They're all in narrative form in this chapter, and I might put it in someone's point of view in the next. Depends whether you like it that way or not. Tell me that in a review as well! :D  
(I'm getting so much compliments :D) **

**Review, review, review!**


	14. Chapter 14: Caught Red Handed

**Disclaimer: I hate saying this so many times, but yeah. I don't own PJO.**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter fourteen**

* * *

In the kitchen, Annabeth and Percy were working on their famous blue cookies and some croissants while Thalia was preparing the turkey and Katie was making the salad with Juniper. Silena was making lemonade. Very slowly. She doesn't want to ruin her makeup.

"The boys should help too," Thalia groaned tiredly as she placed the turkey in the oven.

"Hey! I'm a boy!" Percy protested.

"You don't count," Thalia said.

"I'm offended," Percy pouted. "If I'm not a boy, then I'm a _man_," Percy grinned, striking a pose.

"We're all sure that's what Annabeth thinks," Silena giggled as the rest of the girls laughed, and Annabeth's face instantly turned red. Percy on the other hand, didn't get it at all. He's earned his obliviousness from his father after all.

"W-Wha-What d-does that mean?" Annabeth stuttered.

"Oh, we're all sure that we all know what it means," Thalia flashed a grin. "Well, excluding Percy."

"Hey! Are you implying that I'm stupid?" Percy crossed his arms.

"Yes," the room chanted.

"Some friends I have," Percy muttered, and continued with mixing the dough for the cookies.

"You think we made too much salad?" Juniper asked everyone.

The people working in the kitchen all turned to look at the salad they've been making. And yes indeed, they've over made the salads. In our point of view at least. Everyone stared at the ten large bowls of salad the two girls had prepared, and both Katie and Juniper shrugged.

"I think we should make more," Katie said thoughtfully.

"Are you kidding? That's way too much!" Thalia protested.

"Well, then that means you haven't exactly seen how Grover and Travis eats nowadays," Juniper says.

"Travis' even worse when it comes to my salads," Katie sighed. "Twenty more?"

"Thirty," Juniper decided.

"Boys are pigs," Thalia muttered.

"I'm offended!" Percy faked pain again.

Annabeth snickered and playfully punched his arm. Thalia did the same. The arm punching part, I mean. Let's just say we wouldn't exactly call it "friendly". Percy was lying face first on the ground.

"Thalia!" Annabeth exclaimed.

"What?" Thalia asked innocently. "Is he that weak? I thought he could handle a punch like that. I never thought Percy would actually act so weak in front of Annabeth."

Annabeth looked at Thalia with confusion. "What does that mean?"

"Nothing," Thalia sang.

"Unnmmmmgggaahhh," Percy mumbled out nonsense.

Annabeth scowled. She did _not _like being left out of the blue, not knowing something that someone else already knows. She was determined to find out.

"Ow," Percy said something that would be considered an actual word.

"Almost done…" Silena says, focusing on her job.

"All these salads are exhausting," Katie sighed.

"I don't like vegetables," Percy commented, getting himself up. "I hate salads."

"Of course you do," Annabeth smirked, rolling her eyes as she placed the cookies in the oven. "Roll the dough already."

Percy and Annabeth started to roll the dough for their croissants, and Katie and Juniper continued with the salads. Silena was still, very slowly, squeezing the lemons for lemonade, making sure her nail polish doesn't get ruined and the juice doesn't squirt onto her dress. Thalia was relaxing on a chair, waiting for the turkey to be heated. She peered over at the other boys, frowning at their laziness.

Malcolm was face palming himself because the rest of the boys were thinking of ridiculous dares. Drinking toilet water? Scarfing down ten hotdogs? Lame.

"No," Malcolm repeated for the hundredth time already. "We are not going to make Percy do the chicken dance. Can't you people think of anything better?"

"Trash the Ares district?" Travis smirked.

Malcolm was considering it, but that would just mean death. "Something not so deadly," he suggested.

"Make Percy read a book?" Nico snickered.

"What's wrong with a book?" Malcolm snapped at him.

"Everything," the other boys replied coolly.

Malcolm snorted, standing up. "Well, have fun. I'm going to help with dinner," he decided. He really didn't want to deal with those idiots. Seriously, what's wrong with books? The reason he went to help with dinner was not only because they insulted books or planned out boring dares, but the people in the kitchen seemed to be having a lot of fun.

"Hi," Malcolm says to Katie.

"Want to help?" she asked.

"Yeah. Those guys aren't fun," Malcolm replied.

"Good. We need help with these salads," Juniper sighed from exhaustion.

"Whoa," Malcolm's eyes almost popped out, staring at the amount of lettuce and tomatoes.

* * *

**Outside**

Athena smirked at Poseidon. "Well, looks like my son helped out too," she says.

"Percy helped out _first_," Poseidon replied smoothly.

"Nobody cares about that boy," Athena scoffed.

"I care," Poseidon offered.

"That proves you're a nobody," Athena rolled her eyes.

"Well if I'm a nobody, why are you even talking to a nobody like me?" Poseidon grinned. "Does that mean you're a nobody too?"

Athena growled, completely frustrated and making it hard for her to think. She really didn't know how to reply to that and for a goddess of _wisdom _too. "Just shut up. You're being immature," was the best she could think of at the moment.

Poseidon snickered and went back to spy mode.

* * *

**Athena's POV**

That old stupid piece of immature Kelp Head is so _irritating_. I want to rip his head off and slit his throat open! Where was that axe?

But that's not the point. Anger will just cloud my mind, so I need to calm down a bit. Right now, I need to keep Annabeth away from that…that Barnacle Beard's offspring. Then I need to get her to like someone else. Maybe that Hermes boy, Luke, was it? He's good with swords, is what I heard from Hermes. Anyone's better than that…that sea creature.

"I can't hear anything from here," Poseidon concluded.

"Of course not," I rolled my eyes. "It's not like the window's open."

"Can I open it?" Poseidon asked, reaching to lift the large window up.

I smacked his hands away. "No. They'll notice us, you big idiot. We'll just have to settle with watching their actions."

"That's boring."

"Shut up," I hissed.

"And you need anger management," he pointed out.

I'm telling you. I was _this _close to murdering him, god or not, I'll figure out a way…I always do.

"Shut. Up," my voice rattled with anger.

Poseidon did that lip-locking motion with his fingers, zipping his lips closed with an imaginary key that was indicating that he wasn't going to talk anymore. Then unzipped his mouth and swallowed the pretend key.

"Whoops," he grinned.

"You did that on purpose," I grumbled.

"Of course I did," he said with that stupid, stupid, stupid grin.

I snorted at him – very unfeminine of me by the way – and looked through the window again.

Percy was teaching a blushing Annabeth how to make those horrid croissants. He stood behind Annabeth, hands on hers, practically wrapping his arms around her, showing her how to use that dreaded rolling pin. And I _know _that Annabeth knew how to use that tool. She had to bake and cook for her stepfamily almost her entire life. And Annabeth wasn't doing anything to stop him! She's just standing there; face all red, letting him help her with rolling the dough as he whispered something in her ear. My eye twitched.

"Aw, they're so cute," Poseidon cooed.

"Who are you? Aphrodite?" I spat at him.

"Actually, I'm a male, not female. When's the last time you got your eyes checked? I suggest some glasses," he says.

My eye twitched again. I had to breathe in and out to calm down. Just a tiny bit. "Once we're back at Olympus, I will rip out your vocal cords," I said threateningly. "Then you'd learn what 'shutting up' means."

"Then I should hide in my underwater palace for a few millennia," Poseidon mused.

"Once we get out of this town, I will pulverize you," I corrected myself.

"That's nice. Maybe I'll bunk in with Percy?"

"Zeus' rules. You can't interact with your children," I said proudly.

"Phooey," Poseidon shrugged as if it was no big deal.

He's pissing me off now. Real bad.

* * *

**Annabeth's POV**

Okay, so I've got to admit. I was kind of enjoying this… "Kind of," so shut up. Stop smiling.

Percy's arms were around me, his hands holding mine, showing me how to use a rolling pin. I didn't tell him I knew how to use it…and I felt a bit guilty, but that won't hurt anyone, my right? Anyways, I was, um, _kind of_ happy with his arms around me, and _kind of _enjoying his warmth as he whispered to me instructions on how to make the croissants. Truthfully, I've almost forgotten that we were supposed make bread for our appetizer. .

But, that's not the point right now. Right now, outside sounded like someone just socked another person's face. Everyone dropped what they were doing and scrambled over to the source of the noise. That came outside the window. Was somebody stalking us? I shuddered at the thought, imagining two creepy dudes peeking through the window.

Travis got to the window first and immediately opened it up, and jumped out to check what was going on. Then he stumbled back.

"Uh…" he said, pointing at the two strangers shakily. What was so scary about them?

The rest of us hopped out the window as well to take a close look at the strangers.

One was a woman, standing all high and mighty, and from the looks of it, she seemed to be breathing heavily from anger and was glowering at the man on the ground. Her hands were formed into fists. I was right; she punched the guy. She wore all black: black pants, shirt, and a beanie cap as if she was on a spy mission. The woman looked around her mid-twenties. She had black silky hair to match her outfit and familiar looking gray eyes…

That man on the ground was cradling his nose from pain, about the same age as the woman. He wore a camouflage coloured V-shirt, pants, and a cap covered in leaves like an idiot. He had messy hair along with a short beard on his chin, and green eyes. Both of their auras seemed ancient and…I don't know. Old? That sounds insulting.

Oh Styx. They aren't who they think they are; are they?

"Dear Zeus! That hurt," says the man with the crazy leaf hat. "What's wrong with you, lady?"

"Oh don't, 'what's wrong with you' me. You know exactly what's wrong you rotten fish head!" the woman growled.

"Oh yeah? Well – Oh. Er, hi," the man said awkwardly to us. "We were just… Wrong house! Sorry!"

The man tried to scramble back up, but the woman kicked him back down. "I'm not finished with you yet," she says in a very terrifying tone of voice.

Nico, the daredevil he is, coughed for attention. The woman snapped her head towards his direction. "What do you – Oh."

The man with green eyes laughed hysterically. "So now you notice? I thought you were supposed to be smart!"

"You will die," says the woman threateningly.

"Hello?" Nico asked, and it caught both their attention. "Yeah, look. We don't know who you lovebirds are, but what are you doing here outside our window?"

The woman's eye twitched and her face grew red, and the man's face paled a bit. "_Lovebirds_?" the woman asked, using the word in disgust. "Are you _serious_?"

This time, Nico chose now to cower. "N-No, ma'am."

"Good boy," she says as if she was talking to a dog, but was still pretty pissed off.

Katie, Travis, Grover, Juniper, Malcolm, Silena and Thalia quickly kneeled down to her. I figured it'd be the right thing to do, assuming who they might be, so I followed their actions. Percy and Nico stood there like idiots they are.

The woman huffed. "Seems like there are two children don't have respect."

"Huh?" Percy says stupidly. I mentally smacked his face several times.

"Wait. Why should we bow to you, huh?" Nico crossed his arms, acting all brave again.

"Maybe because we're gods," says the man, and Nico's face fell. "Ah, but it doesn't matter if you bow to us or not. Feel free to stand," he says casually.

"Um, uh," Nico stuttered, and then went down to his knees.

"Dad!" Percy exclaimed with a grin on his face, somehow recognizing him.

"Percy!" Poseidon mimicked him, and flung his arms open. Percy rushed to Poseidon to give him a hug. Does that boy have any manners?

"Does that boy have any manners?" the woman scoffed, reading my mind.

"Yes he does," Poseidon replied.

The woman snorted and looked at me and Malcolm, smiling. "See? My children have respect."

"Hey!" Percy frowned. "Are you saying that _I _don't have any respect?"

"Mom?" I hoped, ignoring Percy. Athena nodded, and I smiled, finally being able to see my mom for the first time. "What are you doing here? I mean, why didn't you visit me before?" I was getting angry for ditching me with a horrible family, but I calmed myself, since she's a goddess after all. Plus, because I was with that horrible family, I got to meet Percy. Ooh, Mom's not going to be happy about that…

"It's against Zeus' rules. We are forbidden to meet our children," Athena answered.

"You were spying on us?" Nico asked credulously.

"Aphrodite was hogging the Hephaestus television. So I had to come down here to look after my children personally," Athena says, as if it was no big deal.

"Then why are you here?" Percy asked his dad.

"To visit you of course!" Poseidon replied with a hearty laugh, and Percy beamed at him.

Athena scoffed. "That's against the rules, and you came to _visit _him?"

"How many times do I have to tell you that I don't care about Zeus' rules?" Poseidon rolled his eyes.

"Then why didn't you visit before?" Percy wondered.

"I visited your mom," Poseidon says. "Not you though, as much as I wanted to. I hid your scent so you'd be safe. But once you figured out whom you are your scent would be soon exposed to monsters. So I couldn't meet you until now, for the sake of your safety. My, you've grown, boy!"

Percy grinned. "Thanks Dad," he said sincerely. I envied how he and his dad got along so well.

"Well, I need to leave before Zeus finds out I was here," Athena concluded. "Make sure you close your eyes. Farewell."

I shut my eyes closed so I wouldn't be blinded by the flash of light I've expected to happen. When I opened my eyes, she was gone. I was a little disappointed because that was the first time I met my mom. And as fast as I found her, she disappeared.

"That's rude," Poseidon stared at the empty space Athena was in. And I silently agreed.

"Aren't you going to leave too?" Silena asked.

"Pfft. Me? Leave? I just got here!" Poseidon says. "Plus, I need more quality time with my son."

"Ooh! Can we go swimming?" Percy suggested like a seven year old boy. He must be really happy to finally see his dad.

"But what about dinner?" Grover whined. "I-I mean if that's okay with you, Lord Poseidon."

"So can I join?" Poseidon wondered.

"Er, sure?" Katie said, unsure about inviting a god to dinner.

"Great! I'm starved," Poseidon laughed again, and Percy laughed along with him. The rest of us were wondering what was so funny. "What're we having?"

"Um, salad, turkey, lemonade, croissants, blue cookies…" Juniper muttered.

"Sounds good," Poseidon licked his lips. "Too bad Athena couldn't join us," he laughed again. "Sucks for you!" he shouted to the sky. No offense to Poseidon, but I'm pretty sure he shouldn't have done that…

A white blinding light appeared beside Poseidon and we quickly shut our eyes closed again. By the time we opened our eyes, Poseidon was on the ground holding his nose again, groaning in pain.

Athena was wearing a furious looking face, and held a large mallet in her hands, standing beside Poseidon. She had changed her clothes into denim shorts, a white blouse, and sandals instead of that spy costume.

"Where'd you get that hammer from?" Poseidon yelped.

"I borrowed it from Aphrodite," Athena says calmly.

"Agh! You broke my nose!" Poseidon complained.

"Whoops. Would you like me to kick it back in place?" Athena smirked, twirling the mallet.

"Who knew Aphrodite would keep such a horrible weapon," Poseidon muttered, and cracked his nose back. "Ow. That hurt," he said monotonously.

We, the demigods plus the wood nymph and satyr blinked, wondering what the Hades just happened.

"Um, Lady Athena," Malcolm says, still down on his knees with everyone else. "Would you like to stay and join for dinner?"

"Glad you asked, son," Athena said. "I'd love to. Sucks for me, you say?" she turned to Poseidon.

"Not anymore," Poseidon muttered.

Mom nodded. "Yes. It sucks for _you_. I'll beat you up after dinner."

Then once again, all at the same time, our stomachs grumbled. But this time, it includes Poseidon. I'm guessing Mom ate something before arriving here.

"I think the turkey's ready," Thalia says. "Excuse me for a moment…" Nico snickered at Thalia's behavior when she left since she usually wasn't very mannerly. I guess that's different in front of the gods.

Everyone else went back to working with dinner, this time with all the boys helping but me and Percy. We stayed to chat with our parents. I think Malcolm's afraid of Mom… He dashed back inside faster than a cheetah.

"Well, nice to see you in person," Mom says to me.

"You too, Mother," I said respectfully.

"Dad! Look! It's a robin bird!" Percy says cheerfully, pointing at a bird sitting on one of Katie's trees. I closed my eyes and counted to ten so I won't yell at him to shut up. As much as I envy how close Percy and his dad are, what part of "gods" does he not understand?

"Ooh! A robin bird? Where? Wait, that's not a robin," Poseidon says. "That's a raven!"

"I'm pretty sure it's a robin. See its red belly?" Percy asked.

"Oh! I see it now!" Poseidon nodded his head. "Want to catch it?"

"You bet!" Percy agreed.

"**GODS, just SHUT UP!**" My mom and I shouted in unison, which kind of freaked me out how we said it at the same time. I guess my mom and I are a lot similar.

"Sheesh, you two need to control your temper," Poseidon raised his hands up in surrender, and Percy did the same. Like father like son.

"Just a robin," Percy says defensively. Then he turned his attention to his dad. "Can we catch the robin now?"

"Sure! Wait. Where'd it go?" Poseidon asked, turning his head left and right to search for that bird.

And you thought it couldn't get worse? They started making bird whistling sounds and calling out, "Here, birdie; birdie; birdie!"

"If only I could blast them into bits of fish crackers…" I heard Mom mutter. "Do you like those Goldfish crackers?" my mom suddenly asks.

"They're okay I guess…" I said cautiously.

"Hmm…" she mumbled, and I was suddenly curious about what she was going to do.

She wasn't going to turn Percy into a Goldfish cracker, would she? Oh gods no. Anything but that. He may be an irritating piece of kelp, but I don't want seagulls pecking at him!

My mom sensed my panic and gave me a reassuring smile. "Oh, no worries. I won't turn Percy into a cracker _yet_. It's _currently_ against the rules to destroy or magically turn demigods into anything at all," she sighed.

"Oh," I numbly nodded my head, worrying about that "yet".

"Agh! I give up!" Percy shouted exasperatedly.

"Me too," Poseidon groaned. "Ooh! A worm!"

"Worm? Where?" Percy asked, excited again.

"I swear, I never thought it'd be possible for a sixteen year old and a _god _to be so immature," I mumbled quietly. I didn't think Athena would hear me.

"I very much agree," Mom nodded her head. "But Poseidon isn't usually this immature. I'm assuming it's because he finally got to meet his son in a long time."

"Same with Percy," I agreed.

"Let's head to the dining room. Dinner must be ready soon," Mom suggested.

"Yes, Mother," I said, and we climbed through the window.

* * *

**Thalia's POV**

The turkey was complete and I hurried to place it onto the dining table before my hands burn. Katie needs to get new oven mitts. They have holes in them.

Anyways, the boys finally decide to help out. So everyone but Annabeth and Percy were outside, probably having quality time with their parents. I envy them. Even though I joined Artemis, I never met my dad yet. He's always busy.

And so as I was baking Percy's and Annabeth's cookies for them, I was hearing bird whistles and calls outside. What the Hades?

"Hey," says a masculine voice. I turned to find myself face to face with Nico di Angelo.

"Lovebirds. I'm sure Athena and Poseidon was happy with that," I smirked.

Nico blushed red from embarrassment. "I didn't know it was them!" he defended.

"What? You couldn't at least sense a _bit _of their godly aura? Or how much they resembled Malcolm, Annabeth, and Percy?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Uh…No?"

I rolled my eyes and smirked. "I wouldn't be surprised if Athena transformed you into a mouse for dinner."

"Ew, Athena eats mice?" Nico gagged.

"Owl symbol? Mice? You really are stupid," I laughed, placing some of the salads onto the table, and Nico helped me out.

He pouted. "I'm not stupid!"

"Sure," I chuckled.

Katie, Travis and Juniper had put the rest of the salads on the dining table, and I swear the salads were practically taking up the entire space. Silena and Malcolm poured the lemonade and Grover was trying his best to serve the croissants without gobbling it all up. Travis on the other hand had already eaten a bowl of salad to my surprise. Pigs.

Nico and I waited for the cookies to be ready since they were still baking.

"Can we turn up the heat?" Nico asked.

"Hmm…I guess it wouldn't hurt…" I agreed.

"No!" Annabeth's voice shouted, and it caused me to jump. Gods, where'd she come from? "You'll burn it."

"It's taking forever!" I whined.

"No," she repeated.

Nico groaned. "Why didn't I just stay in the graveyard?"

"Because you wanted to stay with Thalia," Silena sang, walking by us with a glass of lemonade.

I could've sworn I saw a tint of pink on Nico's cheeks…but it's just my imagination, right?

I spotted Athena arguing with Poseidon in a corner about something as Percy was nibbling on some of the croissants when dinner hasn't even started. Annabeth skipped towards him happily and smacked his head.

Silena was admiring her work with the lemonade, happy that it wasn't too sour. I think she added way more sugar than necessary.

Malcolm was seated on a dining chair yawning, probably regretting not bringing a book with him. Nerd…

Grover and Travis were tackling the salads, which is pretty disrespectful with gods in the room. So I'm guessing that's why Katie and Juniper were trying to hold them back.

Lady Athena huffed and sat down on a chair. "So? Are we going to eat?"

"Yes Ma'am!" the entire room said. Well, excluding Percy and Lord Poseidon. They were too caught up in their conversation.

Everyone took a seat. So here was the seating order: One end of the table sat Athena, and the other Poseidon. On Lord Poseidon's right sat Percy, then Grover, Travis, Nico and Malcolm. Malcolm, of course, was beside Lady Athena. Annabeth sat parallel to Malcolm, beside her mother, and I sat next to her and in front of Nico, then Katie and Silena.

Percy seemed happy beside his dad, and they were having a conversation about sharks, I think… Annabeth looked very disappointed that Percy didn't sit beside her, but was also consumed into the conversation about architecture with her mom and Malcolm.

Silena was checking her nails as Grover scarfed down a bunch of salad with Travis. Katie was slicing the turkey, which Grover by the way found it disgusting. Did I mention he was vegetarian? Juniper was eating some of the salads since she doesn't have a huge appetite as her boyfriend.

Nico and I were eating the croissants as we waited for the turkey to be sliced. What? Meat tastes good.

But I wonder. Will Athena and Poseidon get in trouble for visiting their demigods? I'm not sure what'll happen tomorrow. All we can do right now is hope my dad doesn't kick them down to Hades' territory. That won't be good at all.

* * *

**Olympus**

"Oh. My. Gods. Is that Athena? And Poseidon?" Artemis gapped. "That's against the rules!"

"Hm…It is," Aphrodite agreed as they watched the television screen.

"Are we going to disqualify them? I can't believe my sister would go against any rules at all…" Artemis said.

"Disqualify? No. Punish? Yes. Hmm… Once their little dinner party is over, the demigods are going to have to go on a little quest…" Aphrodite smirked. "Oh yes, that sounds lovely."

"Oh dear," Hestia mumbled as she woke up from her nap. "This won't be good at all…"

"Pish Posh! What are you talking about? This is the most exciting thing that's happened in the past thousand years!" Aphrodite argued. "Heh heh heh…"

Artemis and Hestia backed away from Aphrodite. What an exciting day it'll be tomorrow. If only the people in district four knew…

* * *

**Ugh. I hated this chapter D:  
Do you hate it? I like the previous chapter much better. My writing skills are fading away again! -GASP-  
And I didn't edit it, so it's just ten times more worse, I'm sure.  
But it's longer at least. ...Still sucks... **

**So yeah. A quest is coming up~ You readers excited? :D  
Please review, review, review~  
Let's try to reach 130 reviews~ That's like, four more reviews... small goal. :)  
Don't forget to review~ REVIEW!  
Make sure you tell me how awesome or horrible it is, kays?  
I take insults too :D **

**REEEVVIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEWWWW! :D (LOL. I just realized this: "****REEEVVIIIIII_EEEEEEEEEEEWWWW!_")**


	15. Chapter 15: Surprise, Surprise

**Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson and the Olympians! Surprised? I doubt it…**

**And I've written a one-shot about how Annabeth feels about Percy! Read and review for that one too please~**

* * *

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Fifteen**

_**Olympus**_

"So what's the quest?" Hestia asked curiously, cocking her head to the side.

Aphrodite giggled. "Well, it'll involve Athena and Poseidon of course! It's _their _punishment."

"Then why drag the demigods along?" Artemis wondered, crossing her legs on her throne.

"For the game of course! This'll be _so _interesting! So I've decided! Artemis and Hestia! We're going to have a meeting! Call the rest of the gods! Excluding Athena and Poseidon of course. They'll be joining later," Aphrodite winked.

"Joining later? Athena will find out pretty early that something would be up. She doesn't like missing a meeting, and never late at one too," Artemis says.

"Exactly," Aphrodite smirked.

"Exactly? What are you even planning?" Artemis lifted an eyebrow.

"Oh hush and get the gods already!" Aphrodite pouted, hands on her hips. "I'll tell you the rest of it later!"

"Can't you just get Hermes?" Hestia yawned, poking at the hearth with a stick.

Aphrodite rolled her eyes. "_You _call Hermes. I have a lot of thinking to do before the meeting starts," she crossed her arms. "It's a lot of work, you know?"

"Ugh. You're so bossy," Artemis commented, and Aphrodite stuck her tongue out at her.

The two goddesses left Aphrodite in the throne room thinking to gather the rest of the gods for Aphrodite's oh-so important and mysterious meeting.

* * *

**District Four – Katie's House**

Grover and Travis basically gobbled up almost all the salads, one fourth of the croissants, and half the blue cookies. Percy and Annabeth shared the other half. Nico and Thalia practically ate the entire turkey together. Juniper and Katie was able to share a bowl of salad. Malcolm and Silena just drank lemonade. Like thousands of liters. They had to keep running in and out of the washroom. Poseidon enjoyed eating some of the croissants while Athena kept snatching the croissants from Poseidon's hands and practically swallowing them all. So he kept picking up more croissants purposely to watch Athena eat for amusement.

And during that crazy dinner time, they somehow switched their seats. Poseidon and Athena sat next to each other so that Athena could steal whatever Poseidon was eating. Annabeth sat beside Percy so that they could eat cookies together and talk about random stuff, which by the way made Annabeth _very _happy. Nico and Thalia sat next to each other, arguing about which one of their parents was the best as they stuffed their mouths with some sliced turkey. Malcolm and Silena were talking about make up. Well, Silena was doing all the talking. Malcolm wasn't interested in make at all. He just pretended to listen so he wouldn't get a certain daughter of Aphrodite angry. We've all seen that before… Katie and Juniper were talking about their boyfriends obviously. Nothing new there. Travis and Grover just ate throughout dinner without a word, trying to fill their plates with as much food as possible before they all disappeared. So it was basically an eating contest for those two.

"I'm full," Travis moaned.

"Me too," Grover agreed. "I can't eat anymore…"

"Well it's a good thing you've finished the rest of the food already," Katie says. "I'll go clean everything up."

Katie excused herself from the table and picked up the plates. Even though Travis was bloated, he got up to help Katie to prove that he was a good boyfriend, and can be serious when he wants to, not just pulling pranks on others every day.

"That was fun," Poseidon grinned.

"I can't move," Athena slouched, which was very unlike a goddess.

Everyone weren't surprised about that, since during dinner, they saw Poseidon and Athena more of friends than gods. Meaning no more mannerly Thalia by the way.

"Best dinner ever," Percy cheered.

"Ugh, you're a _prince_. I'm sure you've eaten better stuff than this. Lucky you," Silena sighed.

"But this is the best dinner ever 'cause I have my friends, Dad, and Athena over," Percy replied. "And the food was still awesome."

Athena was a bit taken aback that Percy had mentioned her. She thought because she was Poseidon's rival, Percy was supposed to hate her. Plus, he didn't know she was trying to pry both him and Annabeth apart. She was still going to try sticking with the plan though, even if she feels a bit guilty.

"I very much agree," Poseidon laughed. "Watching you eat was the best part!" he told Athena, and she punched his shoulder.

"Very funny," Athena said.

"Prince?" Grover asked.

"Of the mortal city Atlantis," Annabeth explained for Percy.

"Cool…" Grover moaned, not really caring as he clutched his stomach. "I think I need a wheelchair… I can't get up," Grover complained.

Juniper giggled. "Your fault for eating so much."

"You know, at first I thought Grover was half-donkey," Percy commented randomly.

Everyone at the dining table turned silent before bursting into laughter.

"Seriously?" Thalia scoffed.

"Oh my gods, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth chuckled. "I can't believe you thought that. It seemed obvious he was half-goat."

"Not funny!" Grover protested.

"Oh yes it is, Grover," Poseidon smiled. "Half-donkey. Why didn't I think of that?" he muttered.

"Ow, I can't laugh," Athena groaned.

"Washroom alert!" Malcolm shouted, and ran off.

"Great! I call the washroom upstairs then!" Silena says, and sprinted off.

"Were the lemonades that good?" Nico asked, taking his first sip. "Whoa."

"What?" Thalia wondered and took a sip herself. "Awesome! Silena actually made this?"

"Too much sugar. It's too sweet," Athena says, gulping down the rest of the glass.

Poseidon laughed again. "I thought you couldn't eat or drink anymore! You've got quite a stomach!"

"Shut up," Athena rolled her eyes.

Annabeth rested her head on Percy's shoulder and he draped his arm around her shoulders, both completely unaware that they were in that position. "I've never been so full in my life," she groaned.

"We should do this every day," Percy chuckled. "It'd be cool."

"Yeah!" Thalia agreed, standing up on her chair. "It'd be wicked!"

"How can you _stand_?" Grover gasped in horror.

"I didn't eat as much as you, Goat Boy," Thalia replied. "On second thought, I think I should sit back down," she says, slipping back onto her seat.

Annabeth chuckled but the flinched. "Why's it so hard to laugh?" she wondered. "Wait. Don't answer that. I already know."

"Athena's child," Poseidon murmured, leaning back on his chair with a grin.

"You know what? I think that Athena and Poseidon are a million times more awesome than our dads," Thalia decided.

"Agreed," Nico says.

Athena's face turned red from the compliment. It wasn't like her, but for two demi-gods to choose her (and Poseidon) as their favourite gods instead of their own parents, it's very flattering. And Percy said something earlier too. Although, she must admit she _is _pretty awesome. But she wasn't so used to having compliments like that. And all from the children of the big three.

Poseidon sat there with a wide grin, if it could get any wider. "Thanks! I knew I was awesome."

Athena slapped the back of his head. "You are so egotistical."

Poseidon chuckled. "Who's up for ice cream?"

"Aren't you even full?" Athena asked, astonished.

"With you stealing more than half my dinner? Nope," Poseidon grinned again.

"I regret that," she sighed.

Grover belched loudly, and then his face quickly turned red. "Sorry." Everyone started laughing again.

"I'll go help out with the dishes," Juniper suggested, and left to Katie and Travis.

"Wait up!" Grover called after her, and tried to stand up. Key word being: tried. Grover just stood on his goat feet for less than a second before collapsing onto the ground and snoring like he's never been asleep in his entire life.

Thalia laughed at Grover, pointing a finger at him.

"That's rude," Annabeth pointed out, unconsciously snuggling a bit closer to Percy as she yawned. "I'm tired."

"Aw, so we're not playing truth or dare?" Nico whined.

"We _could_," Percy said. "If everyone else is up for it."

"Oh! I want to join," Poseidon grinned.

"I hate that game," Athena says. "It's so stupid."

"Is not!" Nico says defensively. "Have you ever played?"

"Once with Aphrodite, and never again," Athena sighed, closing her eyes.

"Why? What happened?" Thalia wondered.

"Oh, I didn't do the dare. I just exploded the place and left," Athena shrugged as if it was no big deal. "It's not like I swore on the Styx that I _had _to do the dares and truth."

Percy fist pumped the air with the arm that wasn't around Annabeth. "Then let's do that! Swear on the Styx so that all of us have to do the dares and truths."

"That's stupid," Athena and Annabeth says in unison.

"What if the dare was too extreme?" Annabeth asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Well," Percy started, then stopped himself because he realized how close Annabeth's and his face were. "Uh…" he said idiotically, and Annabeth could feel his breath on her face as her face coloured red, realizing it too.

Athena actually thought they looked adorable together for a moment, and then gagged at the thought. Why in the world did she think of that? She's supposed to be _against _it!

Percy and Annabeth were leaning a bit closer, and Nico and Thalia beamed with anticipation and excitement. Poseidon grinned at his son, trying to be as quiet as possible so that they could have their moment as his leafy hat started littering leaves on the floor. Both Annabeth and Percy locked out their surroundings, only aware of each other, staring into each other's eyes.

Athena coughed loudly to break their concentration with each other, and they quickly pulled apart, faces completely red.

"Aw, you killed the entertainment!" Thalia complained.

"W-What entertainment?" Annabeth stuttered, feeling a bit light-headed.

"Oh you know, the part when you and Percy were about to –," But Nico got cut off by Athena standing up to help stop her daughter from any more embarrassment.

"Are we going to go back to our conversation about Truth or Dare?" she asked, a bit irritated.

"Oh! Are you joining us, Athena?" Poseidon grinned widely.

A mysterious glint appeared in Athena's eyes as she smirked. "If I join, you will regret it."

"Want a bet on it?" Poseidon smiled innocently.

"Bet on. Twenty drachmas," Athena decided.

"Deal," Poseidon agreed, and they shook hands.

"Should we wake Grover and get the rest of the people?" Thalia asked.

"That'd be more fun," Nico says.

"Oh, hey!" Poseidon suddenly says. "This is for you, Percy." Poseidon tossed him a pen and Percy caught it. "It's name's Anaklusmos."

"Riptide," Percy easily translated. "Thanks Dad," he said, stuffing the pen in his pocket.

Athena snorted. "A pen," she muttered. "This is yours, Annabeth." Athena flicked a Yankees baseball cap towards Annabeth, and she caught it too.

"Thanks Mom," she said sincerely, happy to receive her first gift from her mother, even if she wasn't much of a baseball fan. Annabeth stuffed the cap in her back pocket. "What's taking Malcolm and Silena so long?" Annabeth suddenly asks. Her mind likes to wander from one thing to another some of the times. "Why's the room so quiet?" she realized.

"Guys?" Percy asked. "Where's Grover? I could've sworn he was drooling on the carpet just a minute ago."

Everyone shared a look after realizing that Grover had _disappeared_. They got up to check what was going on. They entered the kitchen first. The dishes were all clean, but no one was here.

"Hello?" Poseidon called out in a powerful demanding voice. Nobody answered, so he frowned.

"Let's check upstairs," Athena suggested, and everyone agreed.

The four demigods and two gods headed up the stairs, searched the entire house in and out, but there was nobody. They reached the garden and they all sighed, wondering where everybody went.

"Okay, this is freaking me out," Nico said.

"Totally," Percy nodded his head.

"Where's Thalia?" Annabeth panicked, fidgeting with her fingers.

"Uh-oh," they all muttered, looking around them. There was no sign of Thalia.

"Thalia?" Percy called out.

"Thals?" Annabeth asked, raising her voice when she realized her call quivered a bit. Annabeth tried putting on a brave face, pretending she wasn't afraid of the current situation, feeling the pride run through her veins. But honestly, she wanted to cling onto Percy's arm and have him tell her everything was going to be okay as she sobbed like a baby.

"I just saw something," Athena announced, eyes widening. Then put on a confused expression as if something was wrong.

"What is it?" Poseidon wondered, afraid about what was going on.

"I'm not sure," Athena shook her head. "It disappeared quickly, so it was a blur. I know it was white though. Somewhere in the sky?"

"Nico's gone," Percy stated.

Everyone whipped their heads around to search for Nico. He was nowhere in sight.

"Alright then, everyone join hands. That way it'll be safer," Annabeth suggested calmly, even though she was still panicking on the inside. It was like she was sucked into a horror movie.

Percy took Annabeth's hand, and Annabeth held her mom's hand, and her mom with Poseidon's.

"There!" Athena exclaimed, and saw a bird hovering above them.

"Robin bird!" Percy gave a toothy grin.

"You are so _blind_. That's a _dove_," Annabeth rolled her eyes at him. "Wait! A dove?"

"Symbol of Aphrodite," Poseidon says.

"Good job. I'm so proud of you. You figured something out!" Athena said, voice oozing with sarcasm.

"I'm not that stupid," Poseidon shook his head.

"What's a dove doing here?" Percy asked, not getting it.

"Ugh! This is all Aphrodite's doing!" Athena exclaimed, realizing it. "I'm so stupid! Why didn't I think of that earlier? I swear, it's like she's out to get me," she growled.

"Why? What'd you do?" Percy wondered, but Athena shot him an icy glare to keep his mouth shut, and he did.

Athena knew Aphrodite was planning something. Maybe it was because she interfered with the game and has to pay the price somehow. Maybe it was because she hadn't returned her mallet yet. Or it could be some sort of plot to get her and Poseidon together. Athena mentally gagged at that. Why would she ever get together with Poseidon? They were rivals. Hades, they aren't even friends. But after the dinner they've had, Athena wasn't so sure about their relationship anymore. Were they still rivals? They should be. Shouldn't they?

"You know, I have the feeling that Truth or Dare is going to be postponed…" Percy says, snapping Athena out of her thoughts.

"No duh, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth sighed. "So what's going on? Where did everyone go?"

"They should be safe," Poseidon says, glowering at the dove fluttering around like a butterfly. He took off his hat, and threw it at the fluttering bird, but missed.

"Should we check Olympus?" Athena suggested, looking up at the sky. "I need to discuss this problem with Aphrodite."

"Hm…I'll go. You take care of Percy and Annabeth. I'll be right back," Poseidon decided. "You'd do better protecting the kids then I would."

"Don't get distracted," Athena warned.

Poseidon transformed into water vapor, and disappearing to Olympus.

"What now?" Annabeth asked.

"Truth or Dare?" Percy suggested, and both Athena and Annabeth glared at him. "Never mind. Pretend I never said anything," he shrugged so that they would keep their intimidating eyes off of him. Truth be told, they can freak him out sometimes. Get it? _Truth _or Dare? Ah, never mind. Percy makes lame jokes. Don't mind him.

They sat on the grass, staring intently at the dove that was resting on the tree, the bird staring back with its beady eyes. They've been sitting there for more than five minutes, almost ten. It's amazing how Percy was able to stay silent that long. Maybe it's because he doesn't have a death wish.

"That's it," Athena growled. "I'm going to go find that idiotic Barnacle Beard. I _just _told him before he left to not get distracted. I'll be right back," Athena told the two teenagers. "Hold each other's hands just in case you disappear like the rest of them. I'll be right back," she said once again.

In a flash, literally, Athena vanished in thin air. Now it was just Percy and Annabeth. Holding hands. Together. Alone. At night. With shining stars in the night sky. Isn't that lovely? Well, you can start to feel the air getting tense and awkward, but still lovely, right? Right…

"Um, so now what?" Percy asked.

"Percy? The dove's moving," Annabeth replied with a trembling voice, not tearing her eyes away from the white bird.

The bird took flight as Annabeth and Percy stayed still as stone, hoping nothing bad would happen. The bird landed on their intertwined hands, and Annabeth blushed. Doves equals scared animal of Aphrodite. Aphrodite equals love. Dove on their hands equals, well, you get the point.

Percy was staring at the bird, wanting to catch it. So he reached for the bird on his hand with the other, but the bird suddenly flashed bright, glowing neon blue, and a pair of blue handcuffs appeared around both their arms.

"What the?" Percy wondered.

A pink fluffy fog suddenly surrounded them as well as a scent of perfume. Percy and Annabeth tried to move, but it was as if their feet had been glued to the ground.

"What's going on?" Annabeth panicked.

"How should I know? You're the smart one," Percy says.

Then the two felt like they were being lifted into the air, and Percy's face turned a little green.

"You okay, Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth asked.

"I have a feeling that Zeus' going to blast me…" Percy replied.

The pink clouds shot them up straight to Olympus, right in the middle of the throne room as they choked on the perfume scented air.

When the pink fog evaporated, Percy and Annabeth stumbled back a bit, wondering where they were, and the handcuffs disappeared.

"Percy! Annabeth!" Grover exclaimed beside them.

"G-Man! What're you doing here? Where are we?" Percy asked as Annabeth stared in awe around the throne room, taking in the architecture.

"Olympus of course!" sang a voice.

"Mom!" Silena clapped her hands happily, and everyone kneeled down to her. Including Percy too this time.

"Why're we here?" Nico asked.

"You've been called for a quest, of course!" Aphrodite thumbed up at them as if all this was a good thing.

"All of us?" Thalia's eyes widened. "Wouldn't that attract more monsters?"

"Psh, that's why there are more of you," Aphrodite says.

"Annabeth and I didn't get any training!" Percy complained. "What in the world is this 'quest'?"

"Well, you see, your parents…Hm, how do I put this nicely? They all disappeared except for me, Artemis, and Hestia," Aphrodite shrugged. "Oh, and Hera too. But who cares about her?"

Everyone choked on air, coughing like mad.

"_What_?" Malcolm screeched. "Mom's missing?"

"That's impossible!" Clarisse scowled.

"Whoa, _Clarisse_?" Percy gaped. "What're _you _doing here?"

"Me? What about you, Sushi Face?" Clarisse spat at him.

"Not cool," Percy muttered.

"So you _kidnapped_ us?" Grover's eyes widened.

"I'll return you back to where you were before," Aphrodite waved her hand to change the subject. "Later. _Anyways_, I need all of your help for this super exciting and important quest! Oh! I'll be right back! Now where was that television?" she silently muttered.

Once she left, Annabeth did a quick head count to check how many people and who were here. There was Katie from Demeter's, Travis from Hermes', Grover a satyr, Juniper a nymph, Nico from Hades', Thalia from Zeus', Clarisse from Ares', Silena from Aphrodite's, Beckendorf from Hephaestus', Percy's from Poseidon's, me and Malcolm from Athena's, and two other boys.

"You the new kids?" One boy asked. He had this huge scowl on his face, and was really short.

"That guy's Michael Yew. He's the son of Apollo," Travis introduced us to him, fiddling with a can of whip cream. Whip cream? Where'd he get that from?

"I'm Pollux," says the other guy. "I'm the son of Dionysus."

"Whoa! You mean the Wine Dude?" Percy's eyes widened.

"Will you ever stop calling him that?" Thalia asked a bit irritated with the situation.

"Maybe," he shrugged.

Aphrodite then skipped happily into the room, humming some sort of song.

"What's the quest?" Katie asked Aphrodite once she entered. "Why are _we _doing the quest? Can't it be someone else?" Town Half-Blood was very kind and warm, why would anyone want to leave that place? They've got everything there!

"Well, each one of you is your parent's favourite, so I chose all of you to come here to help find them," Aphrodite explained.

"There are two from Athena's," Annabeth noted, showing two fingers.

"Ah, yes. Because Malcolm's the leader of your district. But seems to me that you and your mother are closer?" Aphrodite raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" Annabeth asked, lying smoothly. "I never met her."

"Weren't they just-," Percy started, but Annabeth elbowed his guts before he could say anymore. And Percy quickly understood not to speak.

Annabeth crossed her arms. Aphrodite _can't _know that her mom defied the rules. That would be bad. She would tattle on Daddy like a little stupid girl she is. Oh Styx. Aphrodite can read minds, can't she?

The love goddess shot an icy glare at Annabeth. That solved her question.

"Well, long story short: they seemed to have been kidnapped or something. Can't find them at all," Aphrodite says. "Go and consult the oracle!" she grinned.

"Ugh. Why do we have to come _up_ here by _kidnapping _us? Why can't you just go _down_," Thalia huffed.

"Hm… Maybe because Athena and Poseidon were having a little tea party with you demigods?" Aphrodite smirked at Annabeth. "Oh, don't think I don't know. I'm a goddess."

Annabeth inwardly groaned. Now what?

"But don't worry. I won't tell anybody," Aphrodite shrugged. "Of course, you still have to do the quest. I needed to talk to Demeter about some roses, but she disappeared. All of the gods are gone but us. So that's why we need help!"

Annabeth frowned. Something just wasn't right… But she didn't know what, so she'll just have to go along with it. She can't defy a goddess.

"So someone kidnapped them?" Michael asked.

"That's right," Aphrodite confirmed. "I wasn't able to contact them at all."

"That's strange…" Malcolm muttered. "But why are Annabeth and I here? Shouldn't there be one of us?"

"_Actually_," Aphrodite began. "I need someone smart to help me with some stuff…"

Malcolm's eyes widened in fear. "Um, you aren't going to…"

"Malcolm! I want you to be my assistant until the quest to find all the gods is completed! I need you to help me watch over them, and that nothing will go wrong."

Malcolm sighed. He was relieved to know that Aphrodite wasn't going to give him a full makeover.

"Now off you go my little children!" Aphrodite sang.

"We're not your children," Percy frowned. "Well, except for Silena."

"I'm a nymph! I can't stay away from my tree too long!" Juniper exclaimed.

Aphrodite frowned. "Hm…Alright, you get to stay in town. The rest of you go on the quest!"

"But-," Grover decided to protest.

"No 'but's! Bye-bye! I'll teleport you all to the big house! Well, except for Malcolm. You're staying here. The Hephaestus television is with Artemis right now. I'll show you how it works," Aphrodite added.

"Quest! Quest! Quest!" Clarisse chanted.

"Great," Nico sighed.

"Well, at least we get to leave camp, I suppose," Pollux says.

Percy's face was filled with confusion. His dad was missing? What in the world did they mean by a quest? Are they going to kill monsters? Are they going to die?

"Make sure you talk to the oracle!" Aphrodite reminded them, and once again engulfed with pink foggy perfume that could've gagged all of them to death. Except for Silena. Maybe daughters of Aphrodite do have their quirks after all.

As they descended back down to camp, Annabeth heard Aphrodite's voice in her head, "_You don't want to mess with me, Annie. You should know that my boyfriend's the god of war, and my husband creates deadly weapons_." Annabeth scoffed. Weren't they both missing? "_Oh, and I can ruin you love life too,_" she added. That made Annabeth freak out. I'm sure we all know why. She mentally apologized to Aphrodite a million times which was very unlike her. She rarely apologizes to anybody. And to Aphrodite? That sounds almost impossible. So up in Olympus, Aphrodite was smirking.

"_Oh yes_," Aphrodite thought smugly to herself as she walked Malcolm to Olympus' garden where Artemis was. "_This will be very interesting indeed._"

* * *

**I've decided to update this early for all you awesome readers out there!  
Although didn't add the prophecy yet. But hey! That's the next chapter. At least I updated something.  
And I might not have edited either... Too lazy to get a beta-reader... Too much work... But yeah :)  
Hope you enjoyed it~ And hopefully there aren't any mistakes.  
(I got my braces removed. But my teeth still looks horrible...)  
Anyways, REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW! :D  
Reached over 140! Whoa! Awesome ;)**

**PS. And because I updated early, I might not update again this weekend and update next weekend instead. MIGHT. Depends how awesome your reviews are, and how much reviews I get :D  
So don't forget to REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!**


	16. Chapter 16: Unexpected Encounter

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO.**

* * *

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Sixteen**

The demigods, Grover, and Juniper had arrived in front Big House in Town half-Blood, coughing out the perfume from their lungs. Except for Silena of course who was beaming with joy, taking in the scent of flowers.

"Mental note to never ask Aphrodite to teleport you _anywhere_," Thalia gagged.

"Worst experience of my life," Nico breathed heavily from all the coughing.

"Worse than your sister's death?" Clarisse smirked, and Nico glared her down.

"You have a sister?" Thalia asked, very surprised.

"_Had_," Nico corrected.

"Oh. Sorry," Thalia said quietly who usually likes being the loudest and noisiest thing in her environment.

"Its fine," Nico shook his head, obviously not wanting to talk about it.

"Chiron!" Annabeth called out, trying to lighten the mood.

Chiron who was playing pinochle with a demigod worriedly on the porch of the Big House turned to face them.

"Annabeth!" Chiron sighed with relief. "Oh good. All of you are here. I was worried since all the leaders disappeared."

"And Mr. D?" Grover added, and Chiron nodded solemnly in reply. So much for lightening up the mood.

"How'd you know?" Chiron asked, as the camper who was playing pinochle with him skedaddled away.

"Aphrodite sent us up to Olympus unexpectedly," Katie says.

"Almost all the gods are gone!" Juniper exclaimed.

Although, in Annabeth's point of view, she knew something wasn't right. She just couldn't put her finger on it. How did she know it? She kept thinking about that dove earlier…

"Who are missing?" Chiron wondered, shifting in his wheelchair.

"All of the Big Three, Athena, Dionysus apparently, Apollo, Ares, Hephaestus, Demeter, Hermes, and I think that's it," Thalia says.

"This is not good…" Chiron muttered. "Any suspects?"

_Aphrodite_, Annabeth thought, but quickly erased the thought from her mind. She wouldn't want her messing up her love life…

* * *

**Percy's POV**

Man, this feels horrible. I had the best time of my life at dinner, and all of a sudden the gods were gone. And Dad and Athena were with us for a while. If only I stopped them from leaving. Gods, I feel so guilty.

"So this calls for a quest?" Clarisse announced. Suddenly, she wasn't as excited anymore. I realized she was looking at a guy walking by. He stopped to check what was going on. It seemed like it was Chris. Go figure.

"Most certainly. Did Aphrodite say anything at all?" Chiron asked.

"She said all of us here need to attend the quest. But Malcolm's staying up with Aphrodite," says Katie with a thoughtful look on her face. Travis was staring at her. I smirked at him.

"Something about helping her with Hephaestus television?" Thalia remembered.

"It's something like that," Juniper agreed.

"The gods are gone," Grover whimpered to himself. I patted his back to comfort him.

"We'll find them," I said, very determined.

Annabeth who stood by me was way too focused with thinking. I could practically see the gears in her head churning. I wonder what she was thinking about.

"Who's willing to lead the quest?" Chiron asked, eyeing each one of us like he was deciding who has most potential to.

Everyone's head shockingly turned to me. Even Clarisse, which doesn't seem normal… Wait. Why are they looking at me? Why are they looking at me? _Why are they looking at me_?

"Uh…Hi?" I said, backing up a bit.

"Percy?" Chiron says.

"Yeah?"

"Would you like to lead the quest?" Chiron blinked innocently.

"Uh, huh? Seriously? You want me leading everyone to their deaths?" my eyes widened. "I was never even trained before! Same with Annabeth! Aren't there going to be monsters and stuff? Won't it be dangerous?"

Chiron frowned. "You're the eldest child of the Big Three. It'd be better this way. Don't worry. You'll do fine."

My shoulders slumped, and a sickening vision of my friend's deaths ran through my mind. I shuddered. He's kidding, right? I looked around desperately for help. Everyone seems to want me as the leader. Even Annabeth.

"Fine," I decided, looking at Annabeth's pleading face. She smiled at my decision, and I sighed out a breath I'd never realized I was holding.

"Go consult the oracle upstairs in the attic," Chiron says.

But before I could enter the Big House, someone stopped me.

"Hey!" shouted a voice. I turned to see Luke Castellan running towards us and I flinched a bit. "What's going on?"

I noticed Travis trying to hide behind Katie, hoping not to get noticed.

"We're going to go on a quest," I said, as if I do that every day.

I saw a flash of anger in his eyes, but disappeared just as quickly. Maybe it was just my imagination?

"Hey, that's great! I've been on a quest before. Got this scar," he pointed at his face. "Not everything goes as well as you hope. But hey, I'll give you a present! It helped me out on my first quest. It'll probably help you with yours."

"Um, thanks," I managed to say at his sudden kindness. Maybe he wasn't so bad. Then I found him checking Annabeth out, and she didn't even notice. She was busy thinking again. I felt anger run through my veins, but I ignored it. "Well, I should go now," I said, and I soon noticed how harsh it sounded.

"Yeah," Luke agreed. "Oh, and are _all _of you going?" he looked at everybody. He seemed to miss Travis who was still cowardly hiding behind his girlfriend.

"Yes," Chiron answered his question. "Aphrodite's request."

"Well, then you should all know that larger group of demigods attracts more monsters," he said. "I'm going to get that gift, Perce. See you later!" he shouted as he ran off.

I blinked, trying to process what happened. "Er, I guess I should go up now?" I said.

"You guess?" Clarisse huffed, watching Chris walk towards us.

I shrugged. "Be right back," I promised.

"If you're still sane," Travis muttered with a humorous smirk on his face. Katie elbowed his guts. "Ow! What was that for?" He got a glare in response.

Everyone was staring at me, waiting for me to go inside. I took this as my cue to enter the blue building.

Inside was nice. The small table and chairs where Mr. D and Chiron played pinochle, a bulletin board with a bunch of pictures of campers and sign-up sheets pinned onto it, obviously blue painted walls and wooden flooring, and a mini-fridge. Nice.

I turned to my left and took a deep breath. I walked up the rusty stairs. The second floor revealed a hallway with white doors, probably leading to Chiron's and Mr. D's rooms. There were more than two though. Maybe guest rooms.

I wandered towards another staircase leading upwards; the attic. I reached the top and knocked on the door.

"Hello?" I stupidly asked. Obviously, no one answered so I placed my hand on the doorknob and turned it gently, wincing at every creak.

I pushed the door wide open to find a room filled with parts of monsters and other disgusting stuff. Spoil of war, I think it was called.

I walked on the creaking wooden floors, deeper into the room. And I found the most horrifying thing in the entire planet. A mummy. Except she wasn't wrapped up in toilet paper. No, she was sitting on a chair, dead with extremely pale skin, dead black-gray hair, white robe and way too much necklaces like a hippie.

Then all of a sudden, the mummy's eyes opened up and it was glowing. And they weren't normal eyes. Oh no. They were black marbles, replacing the eyes. It was a horrible sight.

"I take it back!" I shrieked. "You're not a hippie!" But the eyes were still staring at me. "Close your eyes already!" I demanded and completely terrified, but nothing happened.

Well, something _did _happen. Not something I was hoping for though. I was hoping it'd go back to sleep. Unfortunately, it seems that most of the gods must hate my guts.

The mummy's mouth opened up and a green smoke rose up from it. It was still staring at me. But the good news was that the green fog didn't smell like Aphrodite's perfume.

"_I am the spirit of Delphi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach, seeker, and ask,_" the mummy I'm guessing this was the oracle.

I had the urge to say, "Sorry. Just looking for the washroom," but everyone was counting on me. I let out a shaky breath and said, "What is my destiny?"

The green fog swirled around me, and images appeared. Four gods: my dad, Athena, Dionysus, and Aphrodite. I knew they weren't real since they've got glowing green eyes. But why them? Maybe that's because they were the only gods I've actually seen in person.

Dad opened his mouth first to say something. "_Twelve will search west to find the lost_," Okay, not bad.

Athena spoke next. "_But everything will always go with a cost_." Sounding worse…

Dionysus spoke after her. "_Betrayal could destroy your friends,_" Sounds like something Mr. D would actually say: something depressing.

Aphrodite spoke last. "_But the quest would safely go to end_." Well, at least Aphrodite said something cheery.

The images started to fade, and the green smoke disappeared back into the oracle's mouth. The mummy's marble eyes closed and it slumped back into its chair.

I walked down the stairs, closing the door behind me with a dazed expression, about to greet everyone out on the porch, waiting for the good news. But how would they react when they heard about the betrayal part? Was _I _going to betray them? Or was somebody in our group going to betray us? I had a bad feeling about this quest.

I reached the front porch where everyone participating in the quest was chatting quietly about our death adventure. Well, on the bright side: school was tomorrow. At least we get to skip it.

As soon as I stepped out of the door, heads all turned to me. I stared right back at them, blinking at the silence.

"So?" Clarisse huffed. "What's the prophecy?"

"Oh right," I stalled. "The prophecy. What was the prophecy again?" I mumbled to myself.

"Spit it out, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth rolled her eyes, and murmurs of agreement spread the room. Well, porch I guess.

"Oh, right. Okay. So here it goes," I said, taking a deep breath. I can't hide the truth, can't I? Annabeth would surely find out later anyways.

"_Twelve will search west to find the lost,_

_But everything will always go with a cost._

_Betrayal could destroy your friends,_

_But the quest would safely go to end._"

Everyone was silent again.

"That sounds…lovely," Michael scowled.

"Prophecies can have double meanings," Chiron says, trying to lighten up the mood.

I looked over at Annabeth and found her back in thinking mode. Clarisse looked a bit worried as she sharpened her sword, and Michael was scowling…like always. Nico had a solemn look on his face, and Thalia doesn't seem too bothered by the prophecy. She was too busy counting the pinecones on the ground that I wondered if she ever heard the prophecy at all. Travis was holding Katie's hand and reassuring her that everything was going to be fine, and Grover was telling Juniper that he'd be back alive. Silena was hugging Beckendorf the Panda to death, and Pollux slouched on his seat, snoring.

I nodded my head at Chiron and sighed, not knowing what to do.

"Well then, you should all pack your bags. Bring what you need and meet up at Thalia's Tree, then leave as soon as possible," Chiron instructed.

Nico looked like he was about to speak up, but he was interrupted by another voice.

"Hey Perce!" Luke waved, running up to us. Once he reached the porch, he placed his hands on his knees, panting. But he held a pair of sneakers by its laces in one of his hands. Luke stood up straight and handed me the sneakers. "They should be helpful to you," he said.

"Sneakers?" I questioned, but before I could say anymore, Luke said some sort of strange word.

"_Maia!_" he said, and wings sprouted from the heels of the shoes. I stumbled back in shock. Flying sneakers? Sweet! "They should come in handy," he said.

"Thanks, Luke!" I grinned. Maybe he wasn't so bad, I guess?

"Here, uh, what's your name again?" Luke asked Annabeth.

She frowned at Luke. "Annabeth," she answered simply.

"Right, this is for you," Luke said, handing her a dagger made of…what's it called? Celestial bronze. Ah, that's the one. Athena mentioned that during dinner before she disappeared.

Annabeth looked at the knife skeptically, but took the dagger with hesitation.

"Thanks," she said slowly. Luke grinned at her, and for some odd reason made my eye suddenly twitch.

"Um, we should go pack," I suggested.

"Prissy's right," Clarisse says, getting up from the bench. "Meet you at Thals pine." She left to her district to pack up, maybe. It could probably be an excuse for her to beat up little kids… Who knows? Maybe Chris, but yeah.

Oh hey. I just noticed. When did Chris get here? He was so quiet that he was practically invisible. I thought Hermes kids were supposed to be loud and irritating like Travis and Conner. Chris left with Clarisse, probably to get her out of trouble.

"See you later," Luke grinned. "If you make it out alive that is," he added, and then sprinted off. That was nice.

"I'll pack up now," Nico said monotonously, and got up to leave.

"Wait up!" Thalia hopped up from her seat and followed Nico off.

Everyone else left to get ready, leaving Annabeth, Chiron and I all alone.

"We don't exactly have anything to pack up," Annabeth pointed out to Chiron.

Chiron nodded in understanding. "I have some emergency backpacks somewhere inside. I'll be right back," he told us, leaving me and Annabeth alone. Awkward… Wait. Pfft, it shouldn't be awkward. We're best friends, right?

"So…" I've decided to say. Annabeth's eyes drifted towards me.

"So?" she asked, urging me to go on.

"So…" I repeated, and her lips tugged upwards a bit. Not that, you know, not that I'm looking at her lips…

Dead silence. Okay, so maybe it's a _little _bit awkward…

It was quiet for a few minutes until a deafening roar same from somewhere in town behind some trees. It sounded like a lion or something.

"Um, is that supposed to be normal?" I squeaked.

"I don't think so," Annabeth answered, trying to remain calm.

All of a sudden, a huge, black fluffy looking dog with red eyes jumped out of the bushes and came running up to us, bearing its sharp teeth. It was supremely fast, and I have to admit, it looked like it was about to ram into me.

"Sword! Sword! Why don't I have a sword?" I panicked. "Where did everyone go? Why can't they notice the loud roaring sound from this fat dog?"

"Maybe because its night time and they should be _asleep_?" Annabeth suggested.

"Why can't they wake up then? This dog's louder than my alarm clock!" I complained.

"Seaweed Brain! Duck!" Annabeth shrieked as it began to pounce.

But before it could claw my eyes out, a few arrows shot the lion-sized dog down and into golden dust. We both turned to see Chiron with a bow and a quiver of arrows, along with two backpacks standing by the doorway.

"A hellhound," he said. "Dangerous one too. Monsters aren't allowed to enter town. Someone must've summoned it."

"Summoned it?" I exclaimed. "Who would crazy enough to do _that_?"

"I don't know," Chiron muttered to himself. "But here are your supplies. Each bag contains some nectar, ambrosia, some snacks and a small first aid kit," he changed the subject.

Annabeth and I took the bags gratefully from Chiron, still a bit fazed from that hellhound and my near death experience. Something tells me that I'm going to experience a lot of that during the quest.

"What about a weapon?" Annabeth asked. "Luke gave me this knife, but Percy doesn't have anything."

"Actually, I have a pen," I said, smirking.

"Oh yes, go ahead and write on monsters," she replied sarcastically.

"But I'm not good with writing. I was thinking more along the lines of throwing the pen at a monster, and then fleeing while it's still dazed," I said thoughtfully.

"Oh yeah, one time use," Annabeth says, rolling her eyes. "I don't think you'd be stupid enough to run back to the monster to pick up your stupid pen then run off."

"Hey! My dad gave me this pen! It's valuable to me, okay?" I protested.

"Oh, my bad. You are that stupid," Annabeth sighed in fake disappointment.

"Rewind please. You said your dad gave it to you?" Chiron asked curiously.

"Um, yeah," I answered slowly.

"May I see it?" he asked politely.

I took out the pen from my pocket and showed it to him. Nothing special. Just an ordinary blue looking pen.

"Uncap it," Chiron demanded.

I did as told, and almost freaked out when the pen started glowing and transforming into a sword.

"That's…normal, right?" I hoped.

"Percy, nothing's normal for a demigod," Chiron replied, staring at the celestial bronze sword. "This sword is called Anaklusmos. This sword has quite a history."

"Riptide," I translated easily.

"That's right," Chiron smiled.

"Wait!" Annabeth's eyes widened. "I got something from my mom. A baseball cap," she says. Annabeth pulled out the cap from her back pocket and placed it on her head. Funny thing was that she disappeared almost instantly.

"Annabeth?" I started to worry. No answer. "Annabeth?" I asked again. Then something poked my back, causing me to flinch. But when I turned around, nobody was there.

"Hm…" Chiron murmured to himself. Does he even realize that Annabeth just _vanished_? "Remove you cap, Annabeth," Chiron says. Huh?

Annabeth suddenly reappeared behind me with a pouty looking face. She looked like she had just taken off her baseball cap, and just about to poke me again.

"Hey!" I frowned.

"Invisibility cap," Annabeth smirked at me. "My mom sure knows how to give gifts."

"At least I got this cool pen sword," I said.

"Go to Thalia's tree," Chiron says, interrupting the conversation. Er, more like argument, but yeah. "I'm sure everyone else is waiting for you right now."

"Bye Chiron," Annabeth said.

"Bye!" I said to him, and we raced off to Thalia's tree.

As we we're running, I started to wonder. "Hey, Annabeth? Why does Thalia have a tree named after her?"

"Because she's the daughter of Zeus?" Annabeth shrugged, and started sprinting ahead of me. I ran faster to catch up.

"But I'm the son of Poseidon," I argued. "I should have a tree named after me too."

"No, that wouldn't be a good idea. It'd just increase your already-large-ego," she smirked, trying to run faster.

"Hey!" I called out, and we continued to race towards the entrance of Town Half-Blood. Annabeth, sadly, had beaten me by a few seconds, and was staring wide-eyed at something. Nobody was here yet but us. Oddly, Annabeth hasn't bragged about her victory, so I knew instantly that something was wrong. I followed her eyes and realized what she's been looking at.

Right in front of us was a bull man, charging right at me. Great. Another monster.

"Minotaur," Annabeth whispered in awe and fear.

I had to agree. The cow man looked pretty gruesome to me, even if it's in its tighty whities. And it was about to ram into me like the hellhound had before. Plus, I had no training whatsoever. Lovely, isn't it? Please note my sarcasm.

"I repeat again," I said shakily, not wanting to face another monster so quickly. "Where's everybody?" I sure hope help is on its way.

* * *

**Aaaaagggggghhhhhhh! I'm so sorry! I was planning to update another chapter last week, but I couldn't since I was too busy with so much homework and stuff. It's tiring.**

**And here's what's new on the C-Nuggets N.L uhm...news:  
_  
_**_Bad News_: I didn't edit. Psh, but that's normal.

_Bad News Again_: This chapter is so short D:

_Another Bad News_: I have a project.  
_  
Even Worse News_: I have no idea what we're supposed to do. Our teacher told us to do almost the exact opposite of the sheet we've gotten for our assignment. So it's confusing, and I have no idea what to do for my PowerPoint presentation. Nice.  
_  
Worst News_: It's due Tuesday. Lovely? I think not.

_Good News_: I made an YouTube account.

_Bad News_: No videos on that yet.

_Good News_: I made a lyrics music video.

_Bad News_: My laptop keeps automatically shutting down on me unexpectedly. So every time I try to upload a video, the screen goes black. This including for my fanfictions. I need a new laptop. Even better, a PC.

**So basically, to sum this all up, I'm going to fail on my science assignment. I think. Ugh... Two more days (including this one) to work on my project. And I have no idea what to do. And my classmates were confused too. So some of us are doing what the sheet says, or something else I think. But on the sheet, we have to answer questions. And I don't like questions. They make you think. I HATE THIS PROJECT. D:**

**I want to stay up all night working on this super amazing fanfiction for my super awesome readers while drinking some tasty grape juice. But now I'm going to suffocate under the wrath of a science project.  
Death never looked so good... I'm kidding. I'll try my best to update as soon as possible!**

**Oh, and I wrote a couple one-shots too. One of them, "Afraid," was written because I wanted to practice my poem-writing skills for the prophecy of this fanfiction. And the other one was a companion to that. So yeah. Read that if you want to entertain yourselves while I'm gone to die from a science assignment. :)  
**

**Anyways~ Please, please review! I love reviews :D  
I've gotten so much. I feel so happy. Give yourselves a nice pat on the back! You readers are AWESOME.**

**PS. I read some of my fanfictions from the past, like the prequel to this one, and I've just realized that fanfiction taught me how to become a better writer. :D  
Or does my writing still suck? Eh, include that answer of yours in a review please! (Even if you think it'll hurt my feelings. At least I'll get a review.) **


	17. Chapter 17: Ready, Set, Separate

**Disclaimer: The word on the left side of this sentence says it all.**

**Author's note at the bottom, the part that says "_VERY IMPORTANT,_" is very important regarding this fanfiction.**

**Town Half-Blood – Chapter Seventeen**

* * *

The Minotaur almost instantly spotted Percy and Annabeth, a couple strides away from Town Half-Blood's entrance. He was woken up by the sudden noise of Annabeth and Percy shouting each other that he/she was going to win. Annabeth noticed the Minotaur right away when he lurked out of the bulky looking bushes, and was too stunned to move. Percy hadn't detected the monster at the moment, so the Minotaur took this his chance to charge.

Percy, who was hoping for help, quickly dodged the attack. Annabeth leaped away at the last moment just when she had snapped out of her daze.

"Percy!" Annabeth called out. "We need to get back to town! The barrier will protect us!"

"Easier said than done!" Percy exclaimed.

The Minotaur was blocking the entrance, keeping people from going in or out. "Moo!" he snorted, nose all wet. "_Gods, he needs a Kleenex,_" Percy thought to himself.

A simple strategy idea quickly popped into Annabeth's head. "Percy! Distract it! I'll get it from behind!" Percy got the message when she unsheathed her knife and took out her baseball cap. She put on her cap and shimmered in the air, disappearing almost instantly.

"Hey! Ground Beef!" Percy shouted at the Minotaur. It wasn't much of an insult really, but it got the Minotaur's attention.

"Moo!" It snorted again.

"That's right! You over there, you fat Beef Head!" Percy continued, rolling his hands into fists.

The bull man grunted and got ready to go for another charge, belching really loudly. He swung his fists in the air like a madman, and a yelp came from somewhere, and then followed by a loud thump coming from the right of Percy. He knew it was Annabeth.

Annabeth was sneaking up on the monster, but it kept swinging his hands in the air with some weird cow-like war cry. His fist accidently pounded Annabeth in the stomach so quickly that she was unable to dodge, sending her flying, and soon made a large impact on Thalia's tree. Her cap fell off and her left shoulder began to ache badly, and her eyelids began to droop down. Annabeth lay unconscious on the ground quietly.

"Annabeth!" Percy shouted, and the Minotaur was surprised to see a girl appearing out of nowhere. He seemed to realize that he was the one who knocked her away. The bull man beamed with pride, grunting at Percy, telling him to bring it on.

Percy's vision was blurry as hot angry tears flooded down his cheeks, hoping Annabeth was still alive. Clouded by anger, Percy recklessly ran towards the Minotaur.

"Moo?" the monster says in shock, wondering why this stupid little demigod was charging at him.

The scene was a hazy. All Percy could remember was doing some sort of flip, breaking one of the Minotaur's horns, and stabbed him with it, causing him to disintegrate into golden dust.

Percy hurriedly ran up to Annabeth with the horn in his hands and checked for a pulse. She was still breathing. Percy let out a large breath, letting exhaustion take over him.

As he was about to fall down unconscious, he heard a voice calling out his and Annabeth's names.

"Percy? Annabeth! Quick, over here!" shouted the voice. Percy didn't have enough time to figure out who the person was since his vision was already surrounded by darkness.

* * *

Percy woke up with the sun blinding his eyes. He tried to get up, but his arms and legs felt sore. He spotted a glass of nectar on a table beside him. Picking it up gently, Percy took a couple of sips, reminding him the taste of blue cookies, recoiling at the taste. At first he thought nectar tasted like apple juice or something.

"Hey, you're awake!" says a voice. He turned to see Grover with a grin. "You've been out cold for about eight hours! We've been getting worried. Man, you should've seen Annabeth's face when-"

"Wait, where's Annabeth?" Percy asked, his eyes brightening up.

"She woke up four hours earlier than you. Her shoulder was broken, but nothing some ambrosia and nectar couldn't fix!" Grover said cheerfully. "Can you get up?"

"Yeah," Percy replied weakly. He kicked his legs off the bed, placing his feet onto the floor. He held his head since he was starting to feel a little woozy.

Grover put a hand on his shoulder. "Need help getting up?" Percy numbly nodded his head so Grover helped pull him up. "Dude, you don't look so good."

"I'm fine," Percy reassured him.

"Hey, I'll get the others, okay?" Grover said, trying to get him to smile a bit.

"Yeah, that'd be nice," he replied. "Wait. Annabeth's coming too, right?"

"Obviously," Grover smirked. "Be right back!" he sang, galloping out of the room.

Percy plopped back down onto the bed, staring at the nectar. Maybe just one more sip… But he knew it would be dangerous. It was tempting though. He likes blue cookies. His hand started to reach for the glass, but was alarmed when someone's voice deafened his ears; his favourite voice.

"_Seaweed Brain!_" Annabeth called out, giving him a massive hug. Since Percy was still sitting on the bed, Annabeth collided onto him so hard it caused him hit his back onto the mattress. Thank gods the bed was soft.

The others walked into the room with smug looking faces. Silena was grinning like there was no tomorrow.

"So you woke up, Kelp filled Head," Thalia says as if it was no big deal. "We heard something going on at my tree, so we rushed there as soon as possible." She pointed at the Minotaur's horn sitting beside the glass of nectar. "Who killed _that_ huge thing?"

Percy pointed at his chin. "Me?"

Everyone's jaw dropped. "B-But you don't even have a sword!" Nico exclaimed.

"I do have a sword," Percy answered. Then a thought popped into Percy's mind. "Wait. Why didn't I _use _it?" he realized.

"Mmm," Annabeth sighed, taking in Percy's ocean scent. Luckily for her, he didn't notice this. Realizing there were other people in the room, she shoved herself off of Percy, sitting next to him. Percy then sat back up, running his fingers through his hair, causing Annabeth to stare at him for a few seconds with a tint of pink on her cheeks.

"Well, anyways we need to get going," Michael said. "We had to stay in the Big House until you woke up. Now let's get moving! We have a quest to attend!"

"Percy just woke up," Katie rolled her eyes.

"Yeah," Grover agreed with her.

"What Kit Kat says," Travis grinned at Katie.

"Stop calling me that," she glared at him, but with a ghostly smirk.

"We could rest for a while longer," Beckendorf suggested.

"No way! We need to get going!" Michael protested.

"But Percy's still not feeling well," Silena pouted. "Annabeth needs to take care of Percy a bit longer," she winked at 'Percabeth'.

Clarisse put her hand on her head, trying to stop her headache she's receiving from this argument. "We need to go, _now_. The sooner the better."

"Not like there's a deadline or something," Katie shrugged.

"Want Aphrodite suffocating you with perfume?" Clarisse asked her.

"Um, no?" Katie answered.

"Then shut your pretty mouth."

"What about Percy? He isn't in position to travel, much less fight," Annabeth says. What about Percy? Well, he was flipping his head back and forth at each person speaking, getting worried about where this argument was going. His gaze lingered on Annabeth for a bit longer before looking over at the next two speakers.

"So?" Nico and Thalia deadpanned in unison.

"_Gee, heartwarming. Such great friends,_" Percy thought to himself. He could feel Thalia's and Nico's eyes glaring through his soul as if they could read minds. Percy laughed nervously. "I'm fine! We can go," he decided.

"Good, now let's get going," Pollux nodded his head, obviously not caring about the fuss earlier. He started heading for the door, but Chiron galloped right in.

"Good to see you're all here," Chiron says. "Luke's given me a suggestion about this quest. It's better to have you all in smaller groups so that you'd all attract fewer monsters."

"What?" Thalia frowned, confused as a shadow appeared behind Chiron. A blonde boy appeared with a grin on his face.

"Hey," Luke said. "Thalia, right?"

Thalia nodded like she doesn't care, but inside she was jumping for joy that Luke remembered her name. Nico on the other hand could tell from her eyes that she was elated. He scowled at Luke who didn't seem to notice him at all.

"Well, my idea was we could separate into smaller groups, and meet up at wherever you're going. That way, fewer monsters would follow you," Luke explained.

"But with larger groups we'd be able to fight them off easily," Annabeth countered. "In separate groups we won't know if somebody's in trouble or not."

"Then you can always Iris message for help," Luke shrugged as Chiron tossed everybody each a small pouch of drachmas. "Larger groups equal more danger."

"Danger is good," Clarisse shared her opinion with everyone. Nico and Thalia nodded their heads vigorously.

"Danger is fun," Nico said, and Luke's eyes widened when he realized he was standing beside Thalia, wondering where he came from.

"Danger is exciting," Thalia grinned wickedly.

"Danger is dangerous," Grover whimpered, nibbling on a tin can from his pocket.

Michael groaned. "Can we leave?"

"Not until we split you all into four groups," Chiron demanded. "It's safer."

"Fine," Thalia sighed dramatically. She most definitely had gotten her dramatic side from her father.

"I'll assign the groups," Luke suggested.

Chiron raised an eyebrow at him. "Hm…But I'd have to agree with it."

Luke nodded his head. "Okay, first group's Thalia, Annabeth, and Silena."

Silena was upset that she couldn't be with her boyfriend, and Annabeth was disappointed that she couldn't be with Percy but didn't show it. Thalia was secretly hoping Nico would be in her group since he's like her best guy friend. Um, plus the skeletons; being the son of Hades must be cool, right?

"Next, _Percy_, _Nico_, _Beckendorf_," he said the name in disgust. He just couldn't believe a son of Hephaestus would date the hottest girl in Town Half-Blood. And there was no way he'd let Nico or Percy take away Annabeth or Thalia from him. He was planning something.

"After that's Katie, Clarisse, Travis. And the next group's Michael, Pollux, and Grover," Luke finished up.

Chiron scowled at the groups Luke had assigned. It was imbalanced. Percy, Nico, and Beckendorf were all very strong with close combat. Michael and Pollux were good with long ranged, plus Grover only had his reed pipes. Clarisse was strong, but Katie wasn't so good with combat skills, and Travis was only good for stealing supplies. That was the only group that seemed alright. Annabeth was untrained, Thalia was the only one with fighting experience, and Silena wasn't best with fighting either. They weren't the best group.

"No," Chiron decided, and Luke narrowed his eyes.

"What do you mean 'no'? The groups are as good as they are!" Luke protested.

Annabeth shook her head. His assigned groups weren't logical at all. "I say, Percy, Grover and I become one group, and then Thalia, Nico, and Pollux. And we could keep Travis, Katie and Clarisse. And that'll leave Beckendorf, Silena, and Michael."

Chiron thought about it for a moment. "Yes, that sounds best," he agreed.

Annabeth's eyes lit up as Percy smirked and nodded his head in agreement. Annabeth was the smart one after all. Plus, he was glad he gets to be with Annabeth. Annabeth was happy about that too.

"Really?" Annabeth asked with hope.

"Yes, we'll leave it at that. Luke, let's go. Good luck with your quest. I hope you'll all return safely," Chiron says, and left with a scowling Luke.

"Sweet!" Thalia cheered high-fiving Nico. "Thanks, Anna!"

"You kidding? I'm stuck with these two!" Clarisse argued.

Annabeth shrugged. "Sorry Clarisse."

"Ah, whatever," she grumbled, crossing her arms.

Percy placed an arm around Annabeth's shoulder, and she blushed a bit, turning around so that he wouldn't notice. "So are we going?" Percy asked.

"Where?" Pollux yawned.

"We're heading west. That's Atlantis, isn't it?" Annabeth asked.

Thalia nodded her head. "The trip seems fun," she says with a smile.

"Can we stay there for a while? I want to say hi to my mom," Percy asked.

"Why not?" Travis shrugged.

"Percy's the prince of that place," Nico pointed out for him.

"W-what?" Travis sputtered out.

Percy laughed nervously again. "That's not so important…"

"Must be amazing," Katie had a dreamy look on her face.

"Let's _go_," Michael urged everyone. So everybody hurried off to Thalia's tree together with Annabeth insisting to help Percy even if he disagreed politely towards her help since he can walk just fine. Annabeth was holding Percy's hand the entire time, which made him a bit embarrassed with everyone smirking at them.

"Where does each group go?" Clarisse asked once they got there.

"Well," Annabeth started. "Each one of us can travel different parts of the forest, and we'll meet up at Atlantis, Percy's place."

"And if the guards won't let you in, tell them you're my friend," Percy added. "And if they don't believe you, tell them the password: Blue Cookies."

"What kind of password is _that_?" Thalia and Clarisse laughed.

Percy looked offended. "An awesome one," he countered poorly.

Annabeth rolled her eyes and patted his back to comfort him. "Plan sounds good?"

"Good," everybody agreed, and each group scattered off in different directions.

- (I was tempted to end it here, but since I'm awesome, I'll make it longer) - (A Bit) -

Percy's group was wandering around the forest aimlessly for over an hour now, not knowing where to go or what direction it is to Atlantis. They were completely surrounded by green grass and tree.

"We're going to die!" Grover moaned, who was failing with his path finding song on his reed pipes.

"Don't be so negative, G-Man," Percy said. "We'll find our way."

"This is hopeless!" Annabeth sighed in frustration, feeling confused. Everywhere looked the same. All trees, all grass, no food.

"Hey look! Apple tree!' Percy said encouragingly, pointing at a tree not so far away from them with red fruits.

"Where?" Grover asked, drooling already.

"Over there on that hill," Percy says.

And a very odd hill it was. An apple tree in the middle of the woods, on a treeless hill.

"It could be a trap," Annabeth warned, not warming up to the idea of getting anywhere close to that apple tree.

"Don't worry," Percy says. "You and Grover stay here. I'll be right back."

Grover and Annabeth were about to protest, but Percy had already sprinted off. You know those bad feelings you get when you're sure something's not right? Yeah, Percy doesn't have that.

* * *

**I did say "A Bit". ;)  
Annnd, I updated early. Yeah. I owe you guys an awesome chapter (although this one was SUPER short) 'cause I was so freaking busy and I was afraid that I might not get the chance to update this weekend, which hopefully I will. I was having tests all week (Although, I didn't study 'cause I keep forgetting about the tests...)! And, remember that project I mentioned earlier? Yeah, I made about 5 PowerPoint stuff for that the entire time, re-doing each one. But I finished! And my partner and I are going third last to present. Awesome.  
Keep your fingers crossed for an update this weekend! Gods, I sure hope I have no homework on Friday either.  
**

**Please review! Tell me how much you hate me for making this a short chapter! 'Cause I'm fine with that. I was upset about this chapter too. But hey, I think it's one of my best ones. Ish.  
Eh... Well, review, review, review! :D**

**Oh! And by the way, _VERY IMPORTANT_: I will be changing the title of this story. Yes, again. I want it to be shorter. "Step One: Love Quest". Well, Aphrodite IS playing with them. Eh...Not so good. But hey, it's shorter than the current one! I'm going to change the title once I've updated the next chapter so you readers wouldn't be so confused. :)**


	18. Chapter 18: Dangers Arise

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO.**

**Chapter One of The Son of Neptune has finally released a preview! :D**

* * *

**Love Quest – Chapter Eighteen**

So there was Percy, frolicking up to the apple tree – not literally, okay? – And the closer he got, the more the appearance of the tree started to shift. Percy stopped running and cocked his head to the side. Something just wasn't right here. But our favourite, idiotic Percy had the guts to walk closer.

"Percy! Get back here!" Annabeth demanded, trying to catch up with him.

"I smell monsters!" Grover whimpered cowardly, hiding behind Annabeth.

Percy just kept walking, speeding up his pace so that Annabeth doesn't smack him for not listening. And the tree soon disappeared and shaped into a… is that an Alecto? Hades no. It was all _three _furies, grinning devilishly at the demigods. Why the Hades did he mistaken a freaking _apple tree _for all three _Alectos_? Last time he checked, apple trees didn't have claws, wings, an ugly face with eyes, and can move around freely like a butterfly. Ha-ha. He just compared furies with butterflies. What a huge difference that is…

"I officially hate the mist," Percy muttered under his breath. And then he did the bravest thing in the entire world: he ran back to Annabeth screaming, "Run! Run! Those aren't apples!"

"Kindly Ones!" Grover exclaimed, retreating from the furies.

"Do they look 'kindly' to you?" Percy asked randomly, trying to keep running.

"Run faster, Seaweed Brain!" Annabeth shouted as all three of them sprinted down the hill with three Alectos chasing after them.

* * *

"That's strange," Nico says suddenly as he, Thalia, and Pollux travelled the deep forest.

"What?" Thalia wondered.

"If Hades is gone, why does it feel like the souls in the underworld are still under control?" Nico said thoughtfully.

"Maybe the gods are in the underworld?" Pollux yawned. "Man, I need some wine."

"Dude, you're underage," Thalia pointed out for him.

"Your point?" Pollux says half-heartedly to her.

"Wait. I think you're right!" Nico's eyes widened in realization. "The underworld feels like there's a _lot _more godly power down there."

"So you're saying that the gods could be in the underworld?" Thalia asked.

"I thought gods couldn't enter others domain," Pollux said, shocked that his random guess of the gods location could possibly be right.

"Unless given permission to," Nico added.

"But… Why would they be down in the underworld?" Thalia's eyebrows furrowed.

"Who knows? We can shadow travel over there and find out," Nico suggested.

"Um… What's shadow traveling like?" Pollux asked nervously.

"It feels like you're about to die. Everything's dark. Like your face's about to be peeled off. But it's normal for me," Nico answered.

"Uh, is that safe?" Thalia asked Nico.

Nico smirked at her. "What happened to, 'danger is exciting'?"

She punched his arm. "Not when it feels like you're about to die."

Nico scowled. "It's not that bad, you know? It's actually fun."

"Oh yes," Pollux agreed, and then quoted from what Nico had said before the departure of the quest, "_Danger is fun._"

The son of Hades glared at him, which sent shivers down his spine as if Nico was promising him death real soon.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "We'll clear our suspicions with the others. Right now, we need to get to Atlantis."

"I can't breathe underwater," Pollux said monotonously.

Thalia smacked him upside his head. "Not _that _one!"

"Oh right. Which one?" Pollux lamely asks as he stared at an ant climbing up his shoe.

"Mortal's city," Nico answered. "Let's keep walking then, since all of you are scared of shadow travelling."

"I'm not scared," Thalia protested, putting on a brave face.

"Good. Let's shadow travel then," Nico decided, and Thalia's face turned pale.

"Um, what about Pollux's opinion?" Thalia asked.

"Oh, we'll just drag him along even if doesn't want to," Nico shrugged as if was no big deal.

"Huh? Whoa, what?" Pollux asked, coming back from daydream mode. "That's not fair!"

"Hey, she's the lady here," Nico replied.

Thalia blushed a little to know that he cared for her. But does he treat the same to other girls? And she doesn't want to have some sort of special treatment just because she's female. But she does appreciate it, meaning she'd have more power over Nico…

"If Pollux doesn't want to shadow travel, then I'm not," Thalia says as an excuse. She didn't want to look like a scaredy-cat in front of Nico. But Nico felt a flash of anger surge through him towards Pollux. Jealousy. Does Thalia care about _Pollux _more than him? He didn't like that feeling. Jealousy. A horrid emotion that is.

Pollux sighed in relief. "Well then, let's go, eh?"

"Yeah," Nico snarled at him, and then stormed off towards the direction to Atlantis.

Thalia raised a questioning eyebrow at Nico's angry figure walking off. "What's with him?"

Pollux shrugged. "I dunno. I think he needs some wine. Wine cures everything!"

"Weirdo," Thalia shook her head, and followed Nico.

"Well that was insulting," Pollux grumbled to himself, and soon caught up with the other two.

What they didn't know was that there was something hiding behind the tall, dark pine trees. The woman smirked evilly, slowly lurking out of its hiding spot with a Chihuahua in her hands.

"Look, Sonny. It's dinner," she hissed happily.

* * *

"Yawn," says Clarisse monotonously as they walked pass boring bushes and trees they've been seeing for about ten minutes.

"Aw, lighten up, Claire!" Travis teased, and Clarisse glared icily at him. Only Chris and Silena were allowed to call her that. "Or not?" Travis whimpered.

"Travis, shut up," said his girlfriend. "We should almost be there."

Katie knew her way around the forest as much as Thalia did. She sometimes came out here with Travis to tend some of the wild plants that seemed unhealthy. Travis was only there with her to protect her from monsters no matter how much she protested.

Miraculously, in about half an hour, they've reached Atlantis without any problems. The city was built in metallic blue, gray, and green bricks glowing with lit lanterns. It was a beautiful sight. Most people were riding in carriages with horses pulling them, and there was a person with enough money to ride and afford a nice white sports car. Definitely not from here. This city was known to keep its medieval style.

The sports car was parked by an expensive clothing store, and Travis grinned. "Sweet ride," he said.

"Travis, don't bother," Katie demanded, and he gave her that pouty look he knows she can't resist.

"Keep your boyfriend under control. Make him stay far, far _away _from that car," Clarisse ordered.

Katie bit her lip, knowing she was going to regret saying this. But before she could over think her decision, she squeaked out a little, "Maybe?"

Travis flashed a mischievous grin at his girlfriend and sneaked off to steal the car.

"Hey! Get back here! That wasn't a direct answer!" Katie called out, fuming.

"You know, you just could've say 'no' instead, right?" Clarisse said, obviously not so happy with Travis running off to steal objects from people with her arms crossed.

Katie sighed. "Yeah… Whoops?"

"'_Whoops_' is right," Clarisse frowned, sighing as they watched how Travis was going to steal that car.

"Why do I have the feeling that something bad is going to happen?" Katie said out of the blue, furrowing her eyebrows.

"You mean that feeling we all know Percy doesn't have? I have that feeling too…" Clarisse nodded her head.

They stood there silently on the sidewalk for a couple moments, watching Travis trying to unlock the car. Then, almost immediately they both faced each other with a scowl, knowing who would cause that '_bad thing to happen_'.

"Travis," they said in unison.

* * *

Beckendorf, Silena, and Michael Yew had been walking in the forest for about an hour now, heading nowhere but towards more trees.

"This. Is. Boring," Michael said with his usual scowl.

"Hey, no worries. We'll find our way out," Beckendorf promised.

"Ugh! Ew! Mosquitoes! I should've brought that bug spray!" Silena complained as she tried to swat them away, and Beckendorf comforted her by rubbing soothing circles on her back.

"We should probably almost be there," Beckendorf says, very determined, and passed her a can of bug spray from his bag to keep her satisfied.

And yet for another hour, they were still completely lost.

"Isn't that the tree we saw earlier?" Silena commented, admiring the pink flowers on it.

"Urgh! I can't take this anymore!" Michael snapped. "Why do I have to travel with such useless people? This is so stupid! We're lost with _no _food or _water _at all!"

"Actually, I brought some chip bags with me and some boxed orange juice," Beckendorf says.

"Well why didn't you mention that _earlier_?" Michael growled.

"Because I thought you weren't so hungry. I'm not," Beckendorf shrugged.

Michael stared at Beckendorf in disbelief and then turned to Silena. "And you knew he had all that food with-" Michael stared wide-eyed at the apple in her hands. "Where'd you get that?"

Silena shrugged. "We passed that apple tree orchid."

Michael's eye twitched. He – unlike his siblings – was very serious and needed to control his temper. "That orchid? It belonged to _Atlantis_. You're saying we've _passed _the place and walked in a freaking stupid circle?" he snapped.

"Whoa, dude. Clam down. We'll walk back there," Beckendorf reassured. "Here, let my use my tracking device. It shows maps and where monsters could be detected; one of my latest inventions."

Michael gapped at Beckendorf. "This entire time, you had a GPS?"

"Well yeah, kinda, but I didn't use it since I thought this was our first quest and we should try to enjoy the wilderness while we're travelling instead of using a machine. I brought it just in case, you know?" Beckendorf says.

"But you've _never _been the outdoors type of person," Michael protested, still very flabbergasted that he had a tracking device the _entire time_.

"Might as well give it a shot. Who knew hiking would be so much fun?" Beckendorf answered.

"I know right?" Silena agreed. "These trees are so _beautiful_. Well, except for those dull and dark pine trees earlier, but the flower blossom trees are absolutely _wonderful_!"

"Agh! Just turn on that stupid tracking device!" Michael shouted.

Beckendorf did as told. "There turned on. Now we should just keep walking straight ahead from here," he said.

They followed the directions on Beckendorf's machine, and he claimed that they were almost there. And then hurriedly added, "Kind of."

"Is that machine even working?" Michael asked, very irritated.

"Of course it is! My inventions never fail! Well…most of them. But not this one! Just about another thirty minutes, about," Beckendorf promised.

Michael snatched the device from Beckendorf and decided to lead instead. A few minutes later, he started complaining.

"My legs are sore," Michael scowled.

"What?" Silena gasped. "Already? Come on! It's only been about two hours!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. _You're _the daughter of _Aphrodite_, and yet you have more _stamina _than me?" Michael said, completely shocked.

"What? I need to spend more time in malls, you know?" Silena huffed.

"Well that explains it," Michael muttered. "At least we haven't encountered any monsters."

Silena gasped and Beckendorf's eyes widened. "Don't be so negative!" Silena scolded him like a little boy. And just by looking at his size, he did look like a little boy.

"Yeah, you'll jinx it!" Beckendorf agreed.

And right at that moment, a growling sound was heard behind them. Oh no, not just one, but _many_. And the tracking device in Michael's hand began making beeping sounds like mad.

"Should I turn around?" Michael whispered as he froze in his spot.

"I'm not looking," Silena decided, shutting her eyes tightly closed.

"I will," Beckendorf decided.

He slowly turned his head behind him to spot a large pack of the biggest, darkest furred dogs with red burning eyes glaring right at them. And to top that, they bared their wicked blade-sharp teeth at the trio and had foamy drool flood out of its mouth. Can somebody say "ew"? Yeah. I thought so.

"Michael?" Beckendorf says.

"Yeah?" Michael whimpered.

"I hate you," he said simply. "I think we should run now."

"But my legs," Michael quietly complained.

"What's behind us?" Silena asked.

"Nothing much," Beckendorf answered. "Just three, four, eleven hellhounds."

"You skipped five, six, seven-," Michael stalled.

"I get it. On the count of three, we run," Beckendorf says as the hellhounds growled louder, positioning to pounce. "One…Two…Three!"

Beckendorf went over to Silena and Michael, picked them up like potato sacks, and then ran like the wind with Michael telling him the directions.

* * *

"I think…I think we've lost them," Annabeth took in a deep breath as they came upon a dead end.

"Come here, sweeties!" cackled a voice from above. "Where are you, Perseus?

"Or not?" Grover added.

Annabeth glared at him and Percy took her hand, causing her to blush a bit. "Come on! We've got to run!" he said, pulling her along with him. She snatched her hand back.

"There's nowhere else to go but back!" Annabeth protested, gesturing towards the boulders blocking their way.

"That piece of rock looks sturdy enough. We'll climb it," Percy says.

"It's too high; it's not enough time," Annabeth told him. "But if Grover and I stall, it'll be enough time for you to climb over."

"What?" Percy frowned. "I'm not leaving you here! It's too dangerous!"

"But they're calling your name! They want _you_. You're the son of Poseidon!" Annabeth tried to convince him.

"There's no way I'm leaving you!" Percy said, completely determined with a frown. Does Annabeth really expect him to leave her to deal with three powerful monsters? "Or Grover," he added quickly.

Grover bleated. "Thanks man, but the uglies are coming! You better get going, Perce! We'll be fine!"

"Here," Annabeth said, and shoved a dirty baseball cap at Percy. "Use it and leave."

"But this is from your mom. I can't take this!" he protested. Annabeth gave him a pleading look.

"Just go, Percy," Annabeth said angrily.

"No," Percy crossed his arms and stomped his foot like a three-year old.

"Percy…" Annabeth said slowly in a warning type of way. "You will climb up that stupid rock right now."

"No," Percy repeated.

"Oh, for the love of gods! Percy, just go! We'll meet up with you at Atlantis! We promise," Grover said, getting his reed pipes and tin cans ready.

He bit his lip but nodded, taking one quick look at Annabeth before putting on the cap, turning invisible. Annabeth felt a bit hurt that he'd listen to Grover and not her. He only knew Grover for about a day! Psh, what? Annabeth's not jealous! What makes you think that?

"There you are, kiddies! Where's he?" one of the Alectos asked, flying over towards Annabeth and Grover and landing perfectly on its feet, uh, claws.

"Gone!" Annabeth declared. "Go away!" she said unsheathing her knife as Grover started playing as quick tune.

"Oh, but dearies, we won't hurt the boy," another one of the furies said with a freaky grin. "We're just inviting Perseus for a tea party in the underworld."

Grover abruptly stopped playing his reed pipes. "Whoa, Kindly Ones knows sarcasm?"

"Shut up!" the third fury hissed. "Where's the boy? We need to finish up our task! Poseidon-"

The third Alecto vanished into golden dust, returning back to its master Hades as if someone had killed her.

"Whoops," said a voice. It came from an invisible person. Annabeth recognized the person immediately.

"Percy!" Annabeth exclaimed. "What are you doing here?" Even though Percy didn't get away which made Annabeth a teensy bit ticked off, she was kind of glad he stayed (and didn't leave because Grover told him to).

"Uh…I can explain?" he said sheepishly. Even though he was invisible, she knew Percy was nervously rubbing the back of his neck like he would do during situations like this.

"The boy! Where is he?" one of the ugly mutated birds asked. "We must send him to the underworld or else Poseidon-,"

"Whoops. How come whenever you Alectos talk about my dad, I accidently slash you with my sword?" Percy wondered.

"Ack! Stupid boy!" The last fury screeched. "We were just making your quest easier, but you destroyed my sisters! We will kill you one day, Perseus!" and with that, the last one flew off, leaving them alone.

"When the fury said 'easier', she meant by killing me so that I wouldn't have to do anything on the quest, right?" Percy asked, taking off Annabeth's cap.

When Annabeth finally caught sight of him, she smacked his head. "You Seaweed Brain! I thought we told you to leave!"

"Nuh-Uh! Never!" Percy frowned. "There's no way I'm going to leave my best friends with three deadly creatures."

Grover grinned. "Thanks man," he patted Percy on the back. "You did great. Tin can?" he offered Percy one.

"Uh, no thanks. I'll let you have that," Percy refused politely. Grover grinned wider and started munching on the metal.

"That doesn't make sense," Annabeth says.

"You mean eating your weapon?" Percy says, staring at Grover who was chewing on the can. "Yeah, I don't think so either."

"Not that, Seaweed Brain!" Annabeth rolled her eyes. "I meant the Kindly Ones!"

"Why are we calling furies the Kindly Ones?" Percy frowned.

Grover stopped chewing and looked up to Percy. "Because names have power. Say their name, and they would start tackling you the next second." That kept Percy's mouth shut. "Oh, but once you kill a monster, they have to reform in Tartarus, so it takes time for them to come back," Grover added.

"But what the Kindly Ones said. They said that they'd kill you one day," Annabeth pointed out to Percy.

"Thank you for reminding me," Percy said, causing Annabeth to roll her eyes again.

"But if they were going to kill you _one day _then that meant they weren't trying to kill you just now," Annabeth explained.

"So they wanted me alive?" Percy asked.

"Seems like it," Annabeth nodded her head.

Grover bleated. "Why would they even want Percy?"

"Gee, I feel so special," Percy said, causing Annabeth to elbow his stomach.

"Blaa-ahh! That's not what I meant!" Grover waved his hands in the air.

"I'm kidding! I'm kidding!" Percy surrendered, rubbing his stomach from the pain.

"Whew, well, we should get going. I think the Kindly Ones just drove us farther into the forest," Grover said. Annabeth and Percy agreed and continued to walk around aimlessly, not a single trace of a clue on where and how to get to Atlantis.

As they continued to walk, Annabeth was thinking hard about the situation that happened earlier. Something just wasn't right. If they wanted Percy dead, why didn't they kill him right then and there? Him being invisible was no excuse. They'd kill him either way. But they wanted Percy? For what?

"How long have we been walking?" Percy wondered.

"Almost three hours," Annabeth replied.

"Huh. Did the rest of them find their way to Atlantis yet?" Grover said thoughtfully.

"Nah, it's only been three hours," Percy said. "And this forest is _huge_."

"Maybe," Annabeth agreed with Percy, unaware that Travis, Clarisse, and Katie were running for their lives in Atlantis right at this moment.

The trio walked for a few minutes before Percy abruptly stopped.

"Perce? Something wrong, man?" Grover asked. And then his expression turned panicky.

"You hear that?" Percy frowned.

"Hear what?" Annabeth scowled, only hearing the sound of birds chirping.

"You smell that?" Grover whimpered.

This time, both Percy and Annabeth frowned as they sniffed the air. "You mean the smell of pine? Reminds me of Thalia," Percy muttered as Annabeth chuckled, although truthfully she felt a bit jealous that he was thinking of Thalia instead of her right now, but snapped herself out of it. There was no time for boys. They were on a quest.

"The scent's getting stronger," Grover shrieked quietly, fiddling with his reed pipes.

And not so far away from where they were, Annabeth finally heard what Percy was hearing: a scream.

* * *

**BWA HA-HA! I feel so evil for leaving a cliff hanger like that. And for you readers who don't know: HADES NO WAY am I going to leave a freaking author's note without a chapter. I'm not that kind of author.  
And I finished this chapter yesterday. But I didn't update yet 'cause I was wondering how much reviews I would get by the next day. I got three. Gee, I feel so loved. **

**And see? I told you readers I could finish a chapter in a day when I felt like it! With an extra more than six hours of relaxing time...But pfft, I still updated early. Sheesh. Be glad I'm awesome. :)**

**And I changed the title~ Can anyone guess who screamed? Hmm? Oh and by the way if you readers were wondering, yes I tore off the furies bus scene from The Lightning Thief and mixed it up a bit for this chapter. Ah ha-ha..**

**And...SURPRISE! I edited it a tiny bit. A tiny bit... There may be some mistakes... A tiny bit...**

**Anyways, we're almost up to 200 reviews! Keep reviewing! You guys are AWESOME. Review, review, review!**

**OH! OH! I've almost completely forgotten. _THE SON OF NEPTUNE PREVIEW OF CHAPTER ONE_ is here! If you want to read it, go to my profile. The link's there ;)**


	19. Chapter 19: Lion, Goat, Snake, Anteater

**Disclaimer: Roses are red; Violets are blue; do I look like Rick Riordan to you?**

* * *

**Love Quest – Chapter Nineteen**

"That's a girl screaming," Percy stated.

"Um," Grover cleared his throat. "That was Michael."

Annabeth and Percy gapped. "How can it be Michael?" Annabeth protested. It seemed impossible. The voice sounded most definitely like a girl's.

"Mike's the son of Apollo, so he's an amazing singer. And his screams goes a ton more octaves higher…" Grover explained.

"_Ah…_" Annabeth thought to herself. That explains it.

"We need to help him!" Percy urged. But before he had the chance to run off, Annabeth grabbed his wrist.

"Oh no you don't," she growled. "This time, you are _not _leaving anywhere by yourself. Those furies could've killed you."

"But they didn't! They _could've _but they didn't! I'm alive aren't I? Plus, if it wasn't for me, you guys would've gotten hurt!" Percy argued.

"I think Annabeth's right. Sorry Perce, but we should stick together. Splitting up can't be an option right now," Grover says.

Percy sighed but nodded his head. And soon enough, another scream was heard.

"That doesn't sound like the previous one…" Annabeth trailed off. "The screaming came from the opposite side too…"

"Sound like someone crying," Percy pointed out.

"Pollux…" Grover's eyes widened.

"Aw, we're doomed. Who do we help?" Percy panicked, looking from left to right, wondering where they should go.

"We could help both, but it'll be dangerous," Annabeth suggested. "They're coming from both sides, right? We could wait in the middle."

"That doesn't sound so bad," Grover commented. "Besides the fact that we'll die too."

Annabeth scowled and looked like she was about to say something, but Percy spoke first. "We've got to help them! They'll be in trouble!"

"Seaweed Brain's right. We need to help," Annabeth says.

"I'm right?" Percy asked, dumbfounded.

Annabeth sighed exasperatedly. "For once," she told him.

"Oh! Wait, G-Man, this is for you," Percy suddenly remembers. He slid off his backpack as Annabeth tapped her foot impatiently, getting worried about her friends as Pollux and Michael screamed their lungs out. He unzipped the bag and took out a pair of sneakers Luke had given him. "I don't think Zeus would like it if I entered his domain in the sky…" he said.

Grover's eyed brightened up. "For me? Seriously? The flying shoes?"

Percy nodded. "Yup. All yours. Even though Zeus disappeared, I have this feeling he'll still blast me…"

"Aw, thanks man! You're the best!" Grover said, taking the shoes gratefully.

Annabeth groaned. "Sorry to interrupt your little, 'bro moment' but our friends are going to die if you two _don't hurry up_."

Grover quickly untied his current shoes and slipped the flying shoes on his hooves. "Ready!" he says.

"Let's go!" Annabeth said, hand still on Percy's wrist. She dragged him hurriedly with Grover limping behind, trying to adjust to his new shoes.

The screaming got louder by the second. They were getting close. And what scared the fur out of Grover was that he sensed a very strong monster from the right. And a lot from the left.

"Um, I don't think this is a good idea," he whimpered.

"They're coming, don't worry," Percy said. The moment he ended that sentence, a loud roar came from both sides along with the scent of bad breath and a burst of wind.

"Grover, do you have any idea what we're going to face?" Annabeth asked, panicked.

"I sense demigods. Nico, Thalia, and Pollux are on the right with an incredibly strong monster on their tail. And on the left are Michael, Silena, and Beckendorf facing a pack of hellhounds," Grover said. "Can we run?"

"No," Percy said bravely, although he's scared out of his wits. That is, if he had any. "We need to help them."

"This is dangerous," Annabeth muttered to herself, taking in several deep breaths. "Really dangerous."

All of a sudden, the ground started to shake as if a million rhinos are being trampled over by a dozen T-Rexes.

"Nico! Kill it! Kill it!" shrieked a voice that the three recognized as Thalia's. Pollux's voice seemed to be occupied by screaming and sobbing for his life.

"I can't! I'm summoning as much skeletons as possible! If I summon any more, I'll faint!" Nico protested.

"I don't care! Die then! I need to live!" she shouted from afar as Percy, Annabeth, and Grover stared at each other wide eyed, wondering what's going on. They could hear the whizzing sound of arrows being shot.

Then from the left side, they heard Michael screaming like a girl.

"Beckendorf!" Michael screamed. "There are other demigods in the way! We're going to die! And there's another monster! Why's that red blinking dot big than the hellhounds?"

"Don't worry! Just tell me the directions! The giant one means that the monster's a bigger threat!" Beckendorf explained loudly, enough for Percy, Annabeth, and Grover to hear. And to their horror, afraid that Nico, Thalia, and Pollux are going to die.

"Then what's that stupid green blinking dot?" Michael cried.

"That's a satyr!" Beckendorf shouted at him as he ran with Silena napping on his shoulders. Michael's screaming didn't wake her. After all, daughters of Aphrodite need their beauty sleep.

"Stupid satyr! Move it!" Michael screamed like a girl, staring at the mini device, close enough for Grover to hear. "_Eeeekkkkkk_! We're going to die!" he added.

"I feel insulted," Grover scowled.

"We need to help. We need to help," Percy murmured to himself. "I'll help Nico's group. You two handle the hellhounds," Percy decided.

"We are _not _splitting up," Annabeth disagreed.

"We aren't. I'm just going to battle a different monster, that's all. Nico and Thalia will help anyways," Percy said with a pleading look in his eyes. He didn't want Annabeth to get hurt. Whatever he was going to face would be a lot stronger than twelve hellhounds.

Annabeth looked worried, but gave in. She didn't have another idea at the moment. She had to trust Percy, and she did. She's just afraid to lose her stupid, dimwitted Seaweed Brain.

* * *

**Annabeth's POV**

Ugh, I can't believe that Seaweed Brain: doing something reckless again. Thalia and Nico should be worn out by now from the running. How are they going to help him? I guess we don't have a choice…other than running. Grover suggested that, but I'm not going down without a fight. We need to save our friends.

We took our positions, ready to fight for our lives, and our friends. Percy behind me, facing right with me facing left. It felt good to know there's somebody having your back. Grover was flying in the air with his flying shoes. Flying very clumsily might I add. Percy had his sword ready and I readied my knife, making sure my cap is in my pocket just in case.

"Here they come," Percy breathed as the shaking ground got louder.

And soon enough, Beckendorf's team came running out of the bushes carrying Silena and Michael with his arms. My eyes widened. I never thought he could be that strong, running away from monsters with two people to carry. It must be a pain.

"Percy! Grover! Annabeth!" Beckendorf shouted in shock. "What're you doing here? We need to run!"

"We're _dying_!" Michael shrieked, getting way over dramatic.

Silena mumbled something inaudible in her sleep.

"Nico, Thalia, and Pollux are on the other side," I explained. And as if on cue, Pollux started screaming and sobbing again from afar. "There's something worse coming our way."

"Worse than a pack of hellhounds? I don't think so," Michael said as Beckendorf put him on the ground, calming himself down.

"Something worse. Most definitely worse than hellhounds," Grover sniffed the air worriedly.

"Get ready," Percy demanded, eyes staying sharp and never leaving the trees in front of him.

Soon enough, the six of them were surrounded by hellhounds that were chasing Beckendorf's group. Percy wasn't fazed by this. They all had red eyes, and they glared viciously at us with foam drooling out of their mouths. It reminds me of Percy sleeping, excluding the foam obviously. What? We've camped out before, remember? We only had one tent. The other one ran off with that horse… And we didn't do anything, okay? Shut up. Most of the times, I kicked Percy out to sleep on the grass.

"Mm…" Silena mumbled, waking up. "I smell goat. It stinks," she says, blinking to adjust her eyes to the light.

"Why does everybody insult me," Grover crossed his arms, standing on air, forgetting about the evil dogs at the moment. Beckendorf gently placed Silena down so that they wouldn't catch the hellhound's attention.

"What happened?" Silena whispered to her boyfriend, wondering why they were surrounded with Percy, Annabeth, and Grover. The ground still rumbled. The larger monster was coming.

"Don't worry. I'll explain later," Beckendorf reassured her as she yawned.

"Don't move," Percy warned, and out of the trees jumped a sweaty looking Nico, Thalia, and a crying Pollux.

"D-Daddy," Pollux shuddered, red eyed from crying.

"Percy!" Thalia and Nico exclaimed.

"What are all of you doing…?" Nico trailed off, realizing the hellhounds. Their heads perked up from Nico's voice. Nico ran over to Percy's side with Thalia and Pollux behind, snapping his fingers. The hellhounds barked at his command, and disappeared in the shadows.

"How'd you do that?" I asked in awe, turning around to face them.

"Hellhounds are from the underworld. I control them," Nico panted, getting into fighting position.

"Then can't you get whatever's following you to go back to the underworld too?" Grover hoped.

"That monster belongs in Tartarus. I don't control that one," Nico said, holding his obsidian sword.

"That monster almost killed me!" Thalia hid behind Percy and Nico. "I'm out of arrows already."

"Use your spark," Silena suggested.

"I'm exhausted," Thalia said simply. "I can't do much."

"Daddy," Pollux prayed. "Help me. Don't let me die!" Michael followed his example. I don't understand how that'll help if they're gone.

I soon realized what everyone was wearing. Percy, Grover and I wore clothes that stuck to our skin because of sweat. Everyone else was pretty much the same, but Beckendorf was the only one in his team who got scratches in his T-shirt. Nico had his shirt missing, and Thalia's clothes were singed by fire as well as Pollux's.

"It's coming," Beckendorf warned, snatching his device from Michael.

"What _exactly _is it?" I ask.

"Chimera. Three heads. Goat's head breathes fire, and the snake has poisonous fangs. And the lion's just plain scary with sharp teeth and all," Nico said.

"I know what a Chimera is," I rolled my eyes. And then I realized what he said. "We're facing a Chimera?"

Even though Percy's back is to me, I knew he was smirking. "Just noticed that, Wise Girl?"

I glared at his back. I saw him shiver and it was my turn to smirk. He knew I was glaring right through his soul. Good.

"It's coming," Grover warned.

"Careful. You don't want to underestimate a Chimera," Thalia added.

Silena hid behind Beckendorf because he was large and buff. Pollux and Michael followed her example. Pollux and Michael. Pollux and Michael. Are they freaking _kidding _me? Pollux is the son of the grumpy and scary _Dionysus_. And Michael's the son of _Apollo_, who Mom called very egotistical during that dinner. Have they lost their self-esteem?

The Chimera popped out of the trees with a growl. It was a lion at the front: the head and the front legs, goat head on the spine and had goat hind legs, and a serpent as a tail. The serpent bared its poisonous fangs at us, hissing. The goat glared evilly at Grover who also decided to cower behind Beckendorf. The lion with a large mane roared loudly. All in short, it was terrifying.

"Dude, you need to try some Tic-Tac," Percy waved his hand in front of his nose, causing the lion part of the Chimera to roar louder. That just made the oxygen around us die. Thank you, Seaweed Brain. I glared at his back again.

"Percy?" Nico asked. "Don't make it kill us."

Of course, he did the exact opposite. "Hey hairy face!" he shouted, insulting the lion part of its body. "Aren't you going to attack me, wimp? I'll turn you into a sirloin hamburger!"

I coughed. "Percy? Shut up. And by the way, sirloin is beef."

"Shh!" Percy hissed, tilting his head sideways so I could hear him. "You're ruining it!"

I rolled my eyes. He's going to kill us for sure. Have I lost my trust in Percy? Most of it. Especially when it comes to life or death situations like this.

Michael didn't dare say anything, but stuck his tongue out at the monster. Oh my gods. How many immature people am I travelling with? And just then, Pollux took out a bottle of grape wine from his bag and started drinking it. Doesn't seem like the right moment to do that… The he _burped _at the Chimera. Nico started imitating a chicken. I thought he didn't want us killed. Looks like he changed his mind.

Thalia snickered at Nico. "Chicken," she muttered at him, although he didn't seem to hear her.

"That's right, you ugly six eyed freak! I'm going to turn you into a barbeque special!" Percy kept taunting.

"Percy!" Silena whispered loudly. "Be quiet! Stop talking!"

Ugh, why must he be so, so… what's the word? Disobedient. "That's right you ugly fur ball!" he continued to shout. "Aren't you going to try and kill me? Huh?"

What is he _doing_? I have to think. Which hero's defeated the Chimera before? Bellerophon, the one who was rumored to be the son of Poseidon although there was no evidence. What'd he do? He used a Pegasus. He flew in the air to avoid the fire and shot him with arrows. Well, that's one version of the story. Heck, Percy doesn't have a Pegasus! He doesn't even have arrows! Wait, Michael has arrows, doesn't he? Maybe if we're able to get a good shot from afar. But didn't Thalia use arrows?

"Thalia?" I asked who was standing beside me as the Chimera circled around us.

"Yeah?" she replied, eyeing the monster.

"Did all your arrows miss the Chimera?" I wondered.

"Yep. The Chimera's pretty fast with its lion and goat feet," Thalia answered. "I usually get one hundred percent chance hit. But it's impossible with the Chimera. Why?"

"Nothing, nothing. Just thinking," I said.

If Bellerophon was rumored to be the son of Poseidon, and Percy's one too, then was he able to use bow and arrows? Would he have good accuracy? That was Artemis and Apollo's job, but maybe it was possible for children of Poseidon to be good with arrows too.

"Michael," I whispered to him.

"Yeah?" he squeaked, terrified by the situation.

"Pass me your arrows and bow," I demanded.

He scowled at me. "No way! Why would I?"

"I need to test my hypothesis," I answered. "Just pass it."

Michael grumbled something about irritating girls and handed it over. I tapped Percy's shoulder.

"What?" Percy asked, not tearing his eyes away from the monster. It still hasn't attacked yet, and I was getting curious why.

"Do you have a plan?" I asked.

"No?" he answered, and I mentally face palmed myself. He angered the Chimera, and yet he had no plan whatsoever. The nerve of this Seaweed Brain.

"Try using the bow and arrows. Bellerophon was the one who killed the Chimera with these, I think. If we get out of fire breathing range, we might be able to kill it," I told him my plan.

Percy frowned. "Why me?"

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. "Because some people thought that Bellerophon was a son of Poseidon. And _you're _the son of Poseidon. You might be able to kill it." Doesn't Percy read his books? He's got tons of them in his stupid castle!

"Oh, okay," he said, and took the bow and arrows from me.

Michael narrowed his eyes. "Hey!" he complained. "You never said he was using it!"

"Shut up!" I whispered threateningly.

"Out of fire breathing range?" Percy asked, making sure, still not making eye contact with me. You know, not that I'm upset or anything. I mean, seriously. That monster's so ugly; I don't understand why he'd rather look at that than me. Uh-oh. The Chimera's glaring. I think it could read minds too.

"Yeah. Well, Bellerophon found a Pegasus and flew on it to kill it…" I faltered, shifting my feet at the horrifying Chimera.

Percy frowned. "I don't have a Pegasus." No duh, Seaweed Brain.

"Should've brought one," I heard Thalia mutter.

"Something's wrong," Nico says before I could reply, catching our attention. "He's not killing us. The Chimera would've killed us as soon as possible."

The Chimera roared and Grover asked something in goat language, causing the goat head on the spine of the Chimera to bleat back in response.

"He's not killing us _yet_," Grover corrected him. "They're waiting for permission."

"From who?" Pollux choked out.

Beckendorf and Silena stayed quiet, looking around for something else. We were surprised by a startling sound.

"From _me_," says a voice. We turned our heads, including the Chimera's towards the person. Or more like a monster. It was an old fat ugly lady with fangs, reptile scales on her arms with ghastly looking eyes. She grinned cheekily at the Chimera. "Oh, Sonny. Why'd you run so fast? Mommy could hardly keep up."

My eyes widened in horror. "E-Echidna?" I managed to say.

She smiled at me. "Oh, I'm recognized! How sweet of you, Darling. It's so sad that you'll have to die soon."

"Isn't that a type of Anteater?" Percy and Nico said stupidly. I swear I've never met such idiotic people in my entire life. It seems to me that Thalia was thinking the same thing.

Echidna hissed with her forked shaped tongue. "I hate when people say that! Why did Australia name such a pathetic animal after me? For that Percy Jackson and Nico di Angelo, my son shall kill you!"

And thanks to Percy and Nico, the Chimera got its permission from its mommy to pounce at us. Oh joy. Remind me to kill them later if we survive.

* * *

**Not exactly the longest chapter, but at least it's over 3000 words, eh?  
I've been extremely busy lately, so incredibly sorry! But I still made the deadline ;)  
But I didn't edit... I was _going _to... But I need to clean the house 'cause I have a few classmates coming over. Uggghh... It's going to take forever. Plus, it's almost 10 PM.  
I have to do this stupid drama play thing. And I have to go to Areas Track and Field Meet. I'm going to _die_.  
At least school's going to be over by the end of this month. And then there's grad. And the grad trip. Oh yes, grad trip. Another place to get lost in. Did you know that I get lost easily? I've been lost many times. At least I'm lucky enough to be found. Which is a reason why I like to hang around in my room. I have a bad sense of directions... And I tend to space out a lot.  
**

**Review, review, review! Tell me how you think of this chapter ;)  
Hopefully there aren't many grammar errors. Should I get a beta reader? But I usually finish a chapter by the last minute. And if the beta reader doesn't edit it fast enough... Eh, well you get the point. But yeah. **

**Review, review, review! :D**


	20. Chapter 20: Percy Fails Archery

**Disclaimer: I don't even live in the US.**

**Whoo-hoo! Chapter 20 already? Wow. Thanks to you all super awesome fans, favouritors, reviewers, and readers out there! I'm so extremely proud to say that I've got over 200 reviews! Thank you all so much!  
Although for some reason, the prequel to this has about 30 reviews only. You guys don't like that one? I feel a little disappointed… And for those who hasn't read Step Zero: Love Game yet, it's the prequel to this story, yeah? Make sure you read that! (And review! I need more reviews for that one…)**

* * *

**Love Quest – Chapter Twenty**

The Chimera pounced at the group of demigods; the goat head was breathing fire everywhere; the lion kept roaring and snapping its mouth up and down; the snake tried many attempts to bite somebody. The demigods scattered about, defending themselves with whatever they had.

The snake tail tried to bite Grover who was trying to control his flying shoes as he tripped over thin air, which luckily caused him to dodge the snake's attack. "Whoa!" Grover bleated. "Bad snake!" He repeatedly tried to kick the snake's head away from him with the winged shoes.

Beckendorf was shielding and protecting his girlfriend, Silena by holding her tight and taking her to a safer area. This time, Pollux and Michael found their courage to not follow them.

Since Percy has Michael's bow and arrows, he decided to throw rocks at the goat's face, aiming towards its mouth. He's got to try and stop the goat head from breathing fire at them somehow.

Pollux was… Alright, so maybe he did follow Beckendorf and Silena, sobbing in the corner as he drank some of the wine he has left.

Nico was protecting Thalia because she was too exhausted to move a muscle, although she kept protesting that she could still fight. Nico summoned a couple more skeletons from the ground and ordered them to babysit Thalia even though it caused him to become a bit more drowsy. He almost got electrocuted for that, in a battle scene or not. Nico was trying to find a way to slice the Chimera with his obsidian sword without being scorched by fire again. He already had his shirt on fire before. He couldn't risk having to abandon his pants too, especially not in front of Thalia, gods no.

Annabeth was trying to figure out a good place for Percy to shoot the arrow at the Chimera as Percy dumbly tried to figure out how a bow and arrow worked. Annabeth was too busy thinking and engrossed with their current deadly battle to realize that Percy has no clue how to shoot an arrow. Percy the idiot he was nodded at everything Annabeth said, pretending he understood every single word, not even mentioning that he couldn't use a bow.

Annabeth got Percy to climb up a tree to shoot the arrow from there. She then slipped on her Yankees cap and vanished into the air, becoming invisible. She was examining how the battle was going so far.

Echidna was evilly cackling at the demigods, believing that they have no chance against her son. Her son by the way was doing awfully well with the battle. The goat part of the Chimera set Nico's pants on fire already – something Nico hoped didn't happen – and he had to take off his pants revealing his boxers in front of Thalia – another thing he didn't want to happen – before the fire roasted him alive. The skeletons were already defeated by the lion part of the Chimera easily. Nico in his boxers distracted Thalia for a mere second, giving the snake head the chance to bite her leg. She screamed, feeling the poison spreading throughout her body.

"Thalia!" Nico shouted, running up to her.

"I'm fine! I'm fine! Get Michael!" Thalia demanded through her gritted teeth. She tried her best to endure the pain.

"Michael! Heal Thals!" Nico yelled over the loud roaring of the lion, wavering sound of the fires the goat was making, and the hissing sound the snake made who was very satisfied that it caught Thalia. It was a great catch: a daughter of Zeus.

Annabeth scanned her surroundings right and left nervously. Her gaze landed on Percy, wondering what's been taking so long. He was standing on a thick stable looking branch, fumbling with the arrows in his hands. Annabeth groaned, and started climbing up the tree to join him. When she reached Percy, she tore off her cap and crossed her arms.

"What are you doing?" Annabeth surprised Percy, causing him to yelp.

"Um, I've never used a bow and arrow before…" he replied, faltering.

Annabeth mentally face palmed herself, wondering why she didn't think of that earlier. If she did, the situation they were in wouldn't become this worse.

Michael had to drag Thalia out of battle zone to heal her, and it looked like it'll take an awful while to do that. Nico was battling the Chimera by himself in his boxers, sweating like a pig as he blocked the Chimera's attacks. He couldn't fight much longer. Pollux was now drunk and throwing his wine bottles at the lion's head. It wasn't doing any harm to the monster. Grover was pelting the Chimera with tin cans. Silena was throwing rocks from afar at the goat like Michael was before. Beckendorf was trying to activate some sort of metal spider that made Annabeth shudder at the sight of it and inch a bit closer to Percy. A bright light flashed somewhere behind the Chimera but it disappeared almost just as quickly when the goat head blew fire all over it. Annabeth tilted her head curiously at what had happened, but shook the thought away. Their battle was much more important. She could think of that later.

Annabeth sighed. She had no choice and she's never used a bow and arrow before, but it's worth a shot. Get the pun? Never mind. She snatched the bow and an arrow from Percy's hand, deciding to shoot the Chimera herself instead. She readied her aim, prayed to Artemis and Apollo that she would hit the Chimera and released the arrow quickly before Percy's tiny brain could comprehend what had happened.

Everything was silent for a moment, except the sound of the arrow Annabeth shot whiz through the air in sudden slow motion. It hit directly on the lion part of the Chimera's forehead. Golden dust began to flow out, and Echidna gapped, but her son hasn't exploded into dust yet. The wound on the forehead of the Chimera with the arrow stuck in it was just leaking of dust like a trickle of blood from a paper cut.

"I can't believe I had to do the work for you," Annabeth snorted.

"Hey! I could've done that," Percy protested, arms crossed like a first grader.

"Sure you can," Annabeth sighed hopelessly at him.

Percy pouted and snatched the bow back. He picked up another arrow and began to aim at the Chimera. On the outside, it looked like he was trying to be brave and heroic. But on the inside, Percy was trying to impress Annabeth. When he released the arrow, it just fell lamely onto the ground like a leaf.

"Um, I was warming up," Percy made up an excuse.

Annabeth scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Of course, Seaweed Brain." Maybe everyone's suspicion about Bellerophon being a son of Poseidon was wrong. It seems like Percy can't even shoot an arrow right.

"Hey! I can shoot an arrow perfectly, thank you very much," Percy beamed with pride.

Annabeth stifled a snicker. It was time for her to deflate his ego. "Wasn't that the first arrow you've ever shot? I do recall you saying something about how you've never used a bow before," she grinned.

Percy scowled. "I bet you that I'm better with sword."

"You'd better. I seems like you aren't any better with another weapon," Annabeth retorted.

"Hey! As much as I hate to say it, you lovebirds stop flirting already!" Silena shouted at them, trying to put on a frown on her face. Instead, she couldn't help but break into a grin. What? She could sense the love in the air. Well, more like their aura whenever they're close to each other. She couldn't help but feel giddy.

Beckendorf set down his mechanical spider and it rapidly sped up to the Chimera, slicing the monster with its blade-sharp metal legs. Nico regained his posture after a twenty second rest and began tackling it again. Grover was running out of tin cans, and he needed to save some to eat to he took out his reed pipes. He reed piping could've killed the Chimera on the spot. It even almost made everyone deaf. Thalia was beginning to heal, although Michael was starting to look worn out. Pollux was shouting threats to Echidna like a madman as she scowled at him patiently.

"This is insane," Annabeth noted, staring at what was happening from above.

"Agreed," Percy nodded his head. It was quite a scenery.

The Chimera looked like it was about to burst into gold and it looked weak, but Echidna growled at her enemies, which by the way are our favourite heroes. "Looks like you're a strong group of demigods," she hissed.

"And satyr!" Grover added proudly, but Echidna ignored him.

"Good-bye, Perseus. It was fun," she cackled, and disappeared into the shadows with her howling Chimera. Of course, she didn't leave without her throwing a wine bottle back at Pollux. Thankfully he still dodged it at his drunken state.

Percy climbed down the tall tree, and hopped off from a few meters up, landing on two feet. "At least that's over," he said, sighing. He was a bit embarrassed about his failure with archery.

"Monsters can shadow travel?" Annabeth wondered as Percy helped her down. She didn't need the help, but she didn't bother arguing about it since she was busy thinking again.

"Some can," Nico replied, plopping down on the ground with a large sigh. "Like hellhounds. I'm not so sure about Echidna and the Chimera though. I didn't know they could shadow travel. It might not even be shadow travel at all. They could just be invisible and watching our every move."

"Reassuring," Beckendorf grunted as Silena patted his back. He did good helping out with the battle after all.

"I'm almost done with the healing!" Michael announced.

"Hurry up! I'm going to die if I don't stand up soon! I want to punch somebody!" Thalia shouted. She eyed Nico murderously. Visibly, Nico gulped in fear. Who wouldn't be afraid of Thalia?

"Ah ha-ha! I want more wine," Pollux slurred. "That was fun! Want to do that again!"

"No way! That fight was horrible!" Silena shuddered. "I don't like monsters at all!"

"I'm going to need an extra pair of pants and a shirt," Nico scratched his head tiredly. "And maybe some water."

Percy perked up hearing that and began trying to use his Poseidon powers within. It was his first time too, no? He concentrated so hard, Annabeth became curious about what Percy was doing. Percy felt a tug at his guts and soon enough, water began to form in a ball, floating above the palm of his left hand. Percy grinned cheerfully at his work, although he quickly became tired from it. Percy showed the ball of water in front of Nico's face.

"Are you trying to mock me?" Nico scowled.

Percy rolled his eyes. "Just tilt your head and open your mouth," he said.

Nico did as told and Percy tried to let the water fall into Nico's mouth like a waterfall. But instead, the ball of water splashed at Nico's face.

"Whoops…" Percy said sheepishly.

Nico maintained his anger and sighed. "At least that refreshed me a bit. Now I need clothes! Percy, take off your shirt!"

Percy choked on air. "My shirt?" he says incredulously. "Why _mine_? Take Pollux's!"

Annabeth started eyeing Percy's chest curiously as her face heated up at the thought of Percy sans a shirt.

* * *

**Annabeth's POV**

Okay, so it might not be what I should be doing right now, but in my mind I've been cheering Nico on to convince Percy to take off that shirt… Not that, you know, I want that or anything. Psh, I mean it's just a shirt…that's covering his chest and his abs…but yeah. You know, it's just really hot out and Percy should really take off his shirt. It's not like I'd be staring… Wait. I'm staring at Percy right now, aren't I? Styx…

"Why would I want Pollux's shirt? It's covered in…I think that's wine," Nico says.

Everybody turned to Pollux's direction. Indeed, his sleeping form was bathed in wine. He reeks of alcohol too. Silena pinched her nose to avoid the smell. I just stepped a bit closer to Percy. He smells better… Hey! Percy smells nice, okay? If you were in my position, you'd be doing that to. Well, other than Silena's example, but you know, my hands are dirty and stuff from climbing that tree…

"Sorry dude, but my shirt is very important to me," Percy shook his head in disagreement as I mentally wished I had a hammer to smack his face with. He hugged his shirt as if it was his most prized possession. "Besides, I already gave you some water," he protested.

"And you spilt that all over my head," Nico argued. "You owe me for that. So either your shirt, or you pants."

Or preferably both…You didn't hear that from me.

I eyed Thalia in the corner staring at Nico with a glare as Michael continued to heal her wound. Although, I have this feeling that she wasn't glaring at him on the inside…

Percy glowered at Nico but took off his shirt anyways. By the way, Percy's got this nice six-pack. Not that I was looking…You know, I was observing… Okay, so what if they mean the same thing?

Percy threw his shirt onto Nico's face. "You could've asked Beckendorf or Michael," he grumbled.

"Actually, Michael's shirt's too small for me. Plus, Beckendorf's shirt's scratched and it's too big," Nico explained.

"You're so picky," Percy sighed, and thank goodness Nico is too. If he wasn't, I wouldn't be having this great view of…forget what I said…

"At least he has a decent sense of fashion," Silena says, joining into the conversation.

"What? _I _don't have a decent sense of fashion?" Percy frowned.

Silena stepped back and started analyzing him like some sort of latest in-season summer dress. Although, I still felt anger bubbling inside me for some reason. I mean _sure_, I like Percy. But you know, small crush. It'll disappear. If I stop staring at him and stab myself multiple times. No, I'm kidding. It'll disappear. Maybe. Fortunately. Or is it unfortunately? Oh my gods, I'm rambling about Percy, aren't I? I need to shut up with all these stupid pathetic thoughts.

"Hm…" Silena hummed. "You might want to fix that hair, get more fashionable jeans…Oh yes, and a shirt," she suggested to Percy. Personally, I think his jeans are just fine. And I think he looks better without a shirt… And his hair looks better when it's messed up like a bird's nest. His eyes look nice too…

"Nico just took mine!" Percy protested as Nico laughed at his face.

"Nico," I said, deciding to step in. "You shouldn't be the one laughing. You're the one who doesn't have pants on."

I heard Thalia laughing madly as Michael kept demanding her to sit still. Beckendorf smirked and Silena was giggling. Pollux was… Yeah, I mentioned he was asleep, face first on the ground in a weird and awkward position. Grover was nibbling on his tin can, spacing out. Percy and I shared a laugh together. His laugh was…um, nice.

Anyways, Beckendorf introduced to us his little gadget and explained about it. It was pretty cool. With that tiny machine, we could get to Atlantis without a problem.

Thalia got healed after a couple more minutes, which was good. We could've left as soon as possible to Atlantis. That is, if Thalia didn't start chasing Nico as soon as she was healed. Nico had an unfair advantage with their game of tag since he could shadow travel.

Wait a second… "Hey Nico, can't you just shadow travel us to Atlantis? Wouldn't it be easier?" I asked.

Percy's eyes brightened at the thought. "Yeah! That's a great idea! Why didn't I think of that…?"

Nico shadow travelled behind us so he could answer without being pulverized by Thalia. "Actually, there are some people who are afraid of shadow travel, and won't admit it," he says, eyeing Thalia with a smirk, and shadow travelled away again to continue their tag game. Childish.

I sighed and shook my head. Beckendorf and Silena were having a deep conversation with each other while Michael sat next to Pollux, sharpening his arrows and washing off Percy's 'germs'. He must really care about hygiene.

"I guess we'll have to walk by foot," I said to Percy who stood next to me.

Percy groaned. "That'll take forever! Can't swim or something?"

"Is there water?" I retorted.

"No…" Percy grumbled back in response.

I gathered everybody up so we could set off to Atlantis and meet up with Katie and the other two. Speaking of which, I sure hope Travis, Katie, and Clarisse are okay.

* * *

**Sorry! I had to update on Monday 'cause it was getting late and I needed to go to sleep. But I still updated, right?  
Anyways, I know it's not that long, just about 3000 words, but good enough? Don't worry! Next chapter's about Travis, Katie, and Clarisse! It's funny how nobody mentioned about them in your reviews. Aren't you guys curious about their dangerous situation? Huh? Huh?**

**Anyways, review, review, review! I love reviews! Review to me about a guess of what might've happened to Travis's group, eh?  
If you guessed it right, give yourselves a nice pat on the back and enjoy some virtual imaginative cookies! :D  
Or if you want, you can have the choice of virtual imaginative slices of cake instead. I like cake better. Who doesn't love cake?**

**And yeah, I didn't edit... It's normal, so yeah... No matter...**

**Don't forget to REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW! Put down your awesome prediction, okay? :)  
I'd like to hear what you guys have in mind about what's happened. **


	21. Chapter 21: SOS

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJO. **

**To Anonymous Reviewer, Hhhhh: Yeah, I know. But you'll see Percy's intelligence improve later on in the story! I can promise you that, I'm sure. **

**To princess3170: I broke my promise, didn't I? I'm so sorry! I'll try my best to update the castle part like you've wanted as soon as possible, okay? I've been pretty busy the last few days. I've wanted to type this up and update it ASAP. I guess I couldn't find the time for it. But hey! I've added Percabeth in this chapter ;)**

* * *

**Love Quest – Chapter Twenty-One**

Katie, Clarisse, and let's not forget Travis were running away. From whom you ask? They were running away from the cops, guards, and knights of Atlantis for thievery thanks to our favourite son of Hermes.

They were currently hiding in an old and abandoned passage way trying to catch their breath between of a couple smelly dumpsters. Katie and Clarisse glowered at Travis evilly.

"What?" Travis asked innocently, still panting a bit.

"I hate you," Katie growled, crossing her arms. "I can't believe you! Taking that car was enough, but _no_, you had to steal from stores, bakeries, and even pickpocketing old ladies! Seriously, Travis?"

"Yeah, and we didn't keep anything at all either," Clarisse huffed. Katie raised an eyebrow at her. "What? We had to drop all that stuff so we could run faster. Should've fought instead… That way we could've kept the stuff."

Katie sighed. What did she do to get stuck with these two people? Even though one of those people she's with is her boyfriend, but still. "Look," Katie started. "It's bad enough that Travis started stealing things and even earning the award of being number one most wanted thief along with us being his pathetic 'thieving minions'. We _do not _want to get into any more trouble."

"Aw, Kit Kat," Travis complained. "Trouble is fun!"

"That's what Nico said about danger. Is danger fun, Travis?" Katie tapped her foot impatiently for an answer.

"Yes," Clarisse said.

"Maybe…" Travis said thoughtfully.

Katie groaned. Is she the _only_ responsible person in this group? "Just wait 'till Percy gets here. He's going to wring you neck. Oh, it'd be worse when he finds out what you did to his house back at town."

"I didn't ruin it!" Travis defended himself.

"No, you didn't _break _it. But you most definitely ruined it," Katie said. "We need to find Percy and get our butts out of trouble and fast."

"Or we could just tell them the password Percy gave us, and tell them we're friends," Travis suggested.

Clarisse scoffed. "Who am I? Barney the dinosaur? I don't think so."

"Wait, that's a brilliant idea!" Katie agreed. "Maybe they'll let us off the hook."

"They think we're _thieves_," Clarisse pointed out. "They would think we got the information on the password from trading or something."

Katie never thought of that. She slumped to the ground and buried her face with her hands. "This is horrible!"

"This is so awesome!" Travis says. "Quick, what else should we steal?"

"Oh no, Travis," Katie says, glaring icily at him. "There is no '_we' _in this stupid stealing game you're playing. I want to home." Katie began to cry softly and Travis started to feel bad. Making your girlfriend cry? Who would stoop that low?

Katie was usually the goody two shoes. She's never been in trouble for anything. And being Atlantis's most wanted criminal? That doesn't do well on her record at all, even if she usually lives in Town Half-Blood instead of the mortal world.

He sighed, not wanting to upset his girlfriend (which he already did). "Fine. How about we try Iris messaging Percy, huh? We could check where he is and ask for help." Katie sniffed and looked up at Travis hopefully, which made him glad he didn't say anything stupid.

"I've got a drachma," Clarisse sighed. "We'll need light and water."

Travis pulled out a water bottle and a flashlight from his knapsack. He poured some of the water onto the ground. As it formed into a puddle, Travis tossed the flashlight to Katie as she wiped away some tears. Katie turned on the light and a tiny faded looking rainbow formed. Clarisse dropped the drachma into the puddle.

"O, Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow, please accept my offering," Clarisse says. "Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon. Er, somewhere."

An image appeared: it showed something that freaked the trio out. They've spotted the rest of the remaining demigods all in one group facing some ugly terrible monster.

Travis gapped. "W-Wah?" Katie and Clarisse followed the same example.

Percy was standing on a tree branch, high enough for Zeus to zap him into smithereens. Annabeth stood next to him, and Michael was healing Thalia's leg it seems. Beckendorf was fiddling with some sort of metal, and Silena was hopelessly throwing rocks at the monster. Pollux was crying and drinking a bottle of alcohol. Nico was the only one trying to battle the monster with his sword, and it looked like he wasn't going to last much longer.

And when they noticed the monster? Oh gods, it wasn't good. It was this huge…_thing_. The front was a lion, back was a goat, and the tail was a snake glaring at Travis's group through the message as it tries to snap up Grover in the air who looked like he had no control over his flying shoes.

Clarisse was about to speak up to let the other know that they were Iris messaging them, but the freaky fire breathing goat disconnected the message. By breathing fire onto it, obviously.

"That was…" Katie spoke up after a few minutes of silence, thinking of a word to describe the situation.

"Absurd?" Clarisse suggested. "I can't believe it. They get to fight a wicked huge _Chimera_ when we're stuck running away from pathetic soldiers? Why am I even in this boring group?"

"Hey! I feel offended! I'm not boring!" Travis gasped, faking pain as he placed a hand over his heart. "I'm a son of Hermes!"

"Imbecile," Clarisse muttered under her breath.

"We need to help them!" Katie says. "They're in trouble!"

"Good idea," Clarisse agreed sarcastically. "I really want to beat up some monster butt. Either that, or Travis's. We're stuck. The guards surrounded the area. How are we to leave this place?"

"We, uh…kill them?" Travis suggested since after all, Clarisse was the daughter of Ares. It was her job to kill, wasn't it?

A dangerous evil glint appeared in her eyes, but Katie scowled at both of them. "No," Katie disagreed. "No killing! Percy's the prince of this place, remember? We don't want his mom to hate us! We'll be staying at his castle when everyone arrives!"

"Correction," Clarisse says, holding up her index finger. "We're wanted criminals; therefore the queen would still hate us."

"We don't want her to hate us _more_!" Katie argues, although it's pretty hopeless.

Travis groaned in frustration. "You know what? I'm tired. I'm going to go to sleep," he announced, and leaned down onto the surface of the dumpster.

Clarisse whacked a fly away from her face. "So what? We're going to let everyone else die?"

"They've got three children of the big three, a daughter of Athena for strategies, Beckendorf for supplies, Michael for healing, and Pollux and Silena for backup, _plus_ a satyr. They'll be fine," Travis reassured.

"No, have you not seen that Iris message? They were about to _die_," Katie protested. "They're our friends! We have to help!"

"What is there to do?" Travis snapped. "We can't even get out of this place! We're stuck! Right now, all we can do is hope that they'll be okay." He sighed. "I'm sorry. I just feel like it's my entire fault."

"It is your fault," Katie pointed out and Clarisse nodded in agreement.

"If you didn't steal anything at all, we'd be safe," Clarisse added.

Travis groaned. "Okay! Okay! It's completely my fault! Sheesh now let me go to sleep. I'm tired."

Travis closed his eyes and tried with great effort to fall asleep, but he felt too guilty. He just leaned against the dumpster with his eyes closed. Assuming he was asleep, Clarisse and Katie followed his example. Clarisse leaned on the opposite dumpster and Katie on Travis's shoulder. Feeling comfortable, Travis was able to sleep, encountering a strange dream.

* * *

There was Percy and the rest of the gang, treading through the forest of dark green. It was night time and stars shone brightly. They looked tired and needed a rest. Everyone had dark circles under their eyes and they looked dehydrated; even Percy. He was probably out of energy to create any water for everyone. Beckendorf probably ran out of water supply in his large bag. Their aura was depressing. Travis guessed that it was after they've defeated the Chimera; Nico's got a bit of monster dust in his hair.

Speaking of Nico, Travis would've laughed his butt off if his vocal cords would work in his dreams. Where were his pants? It was hilarious seeing Nico hiking with only a pair of boxers and a T-shirt. It looked like someone just woke him up on a Monday morning.

The back of Annabeth's hand was brushing against Percy's as they swung their arms, walking in front of everyone else, leading the way with a gadget of some sort. Beckendorf probably made it. Thalia was yawning every second, and Silena was already fast asleep in her boyfriend's arms. Beckendorf actually looked like he couldn't even carry Silena anymore. It was that horrible. Oh, but you should take a look at Pollux. He's worse. It was probably from a hangover after drinking a bottle of alcohol. He's cradling it in his arms like a baby. Michael was crawling to keep up; literally. Grover was hungrily chewing on his last tin can by the looks of it, savoring every taste.

Travis was shocked. What happened to them?

"Percy, we've been walking for over seven _hours_ after that battle. Are you reading that thing right?" Annabeth asked, leaning her head onto his shoulder. "My legs are getting sore from all that walking."

"What? _The _Wise Girl can't take it?" Percy smirked, although it looked a bit weak.

"I can too," Annabeth stood a bit straighter.

"Can we _rest_?" Michael begged from behind the group, not being able to keep up.

"Monsters will find us. We're in a larger group now," Thalia protested. "And we don't have enough energy to fight. If we split up again, we'll get lost. We need to rely on Beckendorf's invention."

"We can have someone on guard duty while the rest sleeps," Michael insisted.

"We can't," Nico says. "One tired person's weaker than a group of us being in this state. We need to keep walking. I don't even have enough energy for shadow travel."

"We went way too deep into the forest," Beckendorf sighed.

"Mhmmphh," Pollux grunted, taking another sip of that alcohol. He looked like he was about to faint, and wake up with another huge hangover again.

"Don't worry," Percy says. "We'll be there soon." Annabeth sighed and closed her eyes, head kept on his shoulder. Percy didn't seem to mind this, as if it was normal. Travis gapped. Did they start going out without telling him? Aw man, Travis sure loved juicy gossips to spread around Town Half-Blood; almost as much as the Aphrodite kids did.

"I hope," Grover bleated nervously, making an irritating chewing sound.

A couple minutes later, they were surrounded by apple trees; Atlantis's famous apple orchid. The place was filled with trees in rows, red circular shaped fruits on it. There were some ladders scattered about to pick apples with, forgotten to be placed away.

Travis was glad they've arrived. He had almost forgotten about his own problem. He needed Percy to help convince the guards that they're not guilty for stealing (even though Travis was).

"We're here…" Thalia murmured in awe, taking in the beautiful view. Even though it was dark out, the red apples were shining from the light of the moon. Thalia smiled up at the moon as if she was smiling to Artemis.

"Apples!" Nico exclaimed greedily, and hurried off with Grover to pick a bunch of juicy ones.

Percy chuckled at their immaturity (even though he usually is too), and Annabeth opened her eyes to meet his. He realized that Annabeth's eyes looked beautiful in the moonlight, and Annabeth thought the same with Percy's eyes. They didn't realize how close their faces were. They just kept looking into each other's eyes curiously.

Michael coughed purposely so they'd stop staring at each other. They did. Turning their heads away from each other, they blushed furiously red, as red at the apples around here.

Ah, so they aren't dating. Too bad. Travis wanted to go back to town, announcing to everyone that a son of Poseidon was dating a daughter of Athena. Ooh, and that'll start a huge war between Poseidon and Athena. Clarisse and her father would be happy. But a dangerous situation it would be.

Silena seemed to have woken up and glared very evilly at Michael, but he didn't notice it.

Grover and Nico were munching on apples behind a tree, hogging on every fruit they've picked out; the biggest and reddest ones. Thalia scowled and stomped towards them, giving them a piece of her mind. She started shouting things like, "I'm the _girl_," and "Give me that stupid apple!"

Pollux had passed out on the grass the moment they've arrived. Michael crawled over to a tree as fast as a field mouse. He picked a non-bruised apple from the ground and took a bite out of it, looking very satisfied.

Silena and Beckendorf were sitting far away from the crazy people, eating apples under the moonlight as if it was the most romantic thing in the world.

Percy's stomach growled and Annabeth smirked at him. "Come on, let's eat something on the menu," she suggested.

"What's on the menu?" Percy asked with curious wide eyes, and a blush crept up Annabeth's neck.

"Apples obviously," she says, turning her head away. "There's nothing else to eat."

Percy nodded his head in agreement. "And then we nap," he added.

"And then we nap," Annabeth repeated, confirming the decision.

They walked up to a tree with a ladder by its side and Percy climbed up it, passing down each red apple he'd pick to Annabeth. After picking out six good looking apples, Percy climbed back down and collapsed tiredly onto the ground with Annabeth by his side, sitting cross-legged on the green grass. They quickly ate their apples and felt their stomachs fill up.

Percy lay down on his back after their short snack, comfortable with the cool breeze blowing in the orchid. Annabeth lay next to him, cuddling closer for warmth, closing her eyes and ready to fall asleep. Hesitantly, Percy placed his arm around Annabeth's waist and kissed her forehead a goodnight, hoping she was already asleep. She smiled, aware of what had happened and slowly dozed off with Percy's soft breathing (which soon become snoring).

Grover looked dead in his sleep, as well as Nico and Thalia. They were asleep next to each other in a straight line in the order of a satyr, electric girl, and skeleton kid. Nico obviously looked dead in his sleep because he was the son of the dead. He had pale skin and lay still on the grass, unmoving. Grover, well, he tossed and turned a bit as well as Thalia.

Pollux was already asleep from the beginning snoring as loud as Michael who lay under an apple tree with an apple core still in his hands. Beckendorf and Silena fell asleep in each other's arms. Everything looked peaceful.

Travis knew what he had to do the next morning. Sneak into the apple orchid and retrieve his friends so that they could get into the castle safely, and discuss about their quest. Though, sneaking into the apple orchid without getting caught would be hard work. But as a child of Hermes, they've got wickedly fun plans to get there, even if it's just a simple one. Oh, Katie and Clarisse aren't going to like this…they aren't going to like it one bit.

* * *

**I know, I know. It's short and I didn't bother editing, but I wanted to update it as soon as possible.  
I'm graduating on Wednesday! I feel so awesome.  
And I'm drinking root beer. Mmm... And then I'm going to drink some Sprite, and...I'm not healthy, am I?  
Eh, doesn't matter.  
**

**REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW! Tell me about your amazing predictions for the next chapter! ;)  
Inferring doesn't hurt, does it now?**

**Oh, and I'll try to update again earlier if I find the time. Graduation's soon, school year's ending, and things are getting pretty busy. Gods, I sure can't wait 'till summer vacation! Then I'll get to have fun typing up more chapters :)**

**REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW!**


	22. Chapter 22: Worst Day Ever

**Disclaimer: Cows go "moo," ghosts go "boo," I don't own PJO; do you?**

**I just made up that disclaimer thingy just a while ago. I feel so creative! I sound like Apollo now, don't I? Ah, back to the story.  
Oh, and yes. This story did randomly become from first person's point of view to third…  
And yes, thank you all very much for noticing Percy's great stupidity. I get it. Sheesh… Have you people not read my author's notes? I said I'll make him smarter! Mm…Smarties…  
And by the way? _PLEASE READ MY APOLOGY BELOW_.**

* * *

**Love Quest – Chapter Twenty-Two**

Annabeth first woke up from the sound of snickering.

She slowly opened her eyes from the irritating sound, finding herself face to face with a drooling Percy. Still dazed, she snuggled a bit closer and soon enough heard that chuckling sound again. Furrowing her eyebrows in aggravation, she pressed her cheek onto Percy's chest and took in a nice whiff of Percy's ocean-like scent. She sighed in satisfaction.

That got her up. Why was she wrapped protectively in Percy's arms again? Squeaking, she tried to unravel herself from Percy, but it was no use. Had Annabeth been sleeping in that position the entire night? Oh gods… There was that giggling sound; the sound of someone laughing. She snapped her head upwards to the people watching.

There stood a smirking Katie, snickering Clarisse, a Thalia and Nico trying to put on a straight face and terribly failing. Travis was rolling around the grass laughing silently with his face as red as a tomato while Silena quietly clapped her hands with joy as Beckendorf put on a proud smile on his face. Grover smirked along with Katie. Michael scowled at Percy and Annabeth as if seeing people cuddling were the most disgusting thing in the world. Pollux continued to snore in that painful looking position.

"Um," Annabeth started, now beet red. She tried to shove Percy off her, but he was too strong. Slapping his face didn't faze him either. That slap just made him mumble out Annabeth's name, causing her face to turn into a darker shade of red.

"That is _so _cute!" Silena squealed; hand over her mouth so that she wouldn't wake Percy.

"Aw, look at Prissy and Princess!" Clarisse guffawed loudly, not really caring if Percy woke up or not.

"_The _Annabeth Chase?" Thalia raised an eyebrow. "I can't believe it. Falling in love with someone so dimwitted," she says dramatically, putting her hand on her forehead, and making Annabeth feel really embarrassed. "How could you do this to me?"

"Wh-What are you talking about?" Annabeth stammered, although she's got a pretty good clue on what it's exactly about.

"Don't play dumb," Thalia scolded, wagging a finger at her face. Thalia was feeling giddy inside for some reason; a happy feeling. It was probably why Silena loves matchmaking so much. It's the feeling of victory and success when you get two people together, especially if they're your best friends whether you're a huntress or not. To Thalia, it felt awesome.

Thalia remembered Silena's request earlier while the two were still asleep. She wanted Thalia's help to get the two together. She wasn't so sure at first, thinking that it should be best if they just got together themselves. But now? Yeah, she was so going to agree. The drama that will happen…

Clarisse was asked too. She's going to help, duh. Psh, just because she's a daughter of Ares doesn't mean she won't join this little scheme. Besides, Silena's her friend. How could she refuse? Plus, she kind of hoped that one of her plans involves fatally injuring Percy.

Silena noticed Thalia's smug smile and knew right away that she was _so _going to help Percabeth happen. It was like the next Romeo and Juliet. Silena already knew Clarisse's answer since she had already answered. She peered over at Katie too. Silena had also asked for her assistance.

Katie wasn't in it for the feeling of victory like Thalia, or wanting to pound Percy like Clarisse hoped. She was willing to help, oh yes, but she was going to help for the amusement of it. What? Travis had rubbed off on her... just a bit.

So there are four girls Percy and Annabeth have to watch out for; the power-hungry girl, the girl-who wants-to-kill-Percy, the girl-in-it-to-watch-their-bewildered-and-hilarious-expressions, and the mastermind: Silena Beauregard. How interesting things will soon turn out to be.

The boys who were unaware of the girls' plan to get Percy and Annabeth together were still happily taking in the embarrassing moment for Percy and Annabeth. Although…

"Percy's still sleeping!" Nico chuckled loudly. "Man, we should've brought a camera."

As soon as Nico finished that sentence, a couple flashes went off. All heads turned to Beckendorf with a grey camera in his hands. He nodded and showed the pictures to Nico.

"Sweet!" Nico high-fived him with an uncontrollable grin on his face.

Annabeth groaned and stuffed her face back into Percy's chest to hide herself from anymore embarrassment. Geez, what kind of friends were they?

"That was awesome! Sweet blackmail stuff!" Travis high-fived Beckendorf too, calming himself down from laughter.

Wait a second… Annabeth turned her head over again. "When did you three get here?" she asked, staring at Clarisse, Katie, and Travis.

"Oh, you know. Not so long ago," Travis shrugged, and Clarisse started steaming as Katie glared at him. He coughed. "Long story…"

"And long story short, he made us become freaking _bait_ for the guards who were chasing us so he could reach here and wake the others up to stop the guards from killing us. Except for you two," Katie added. "The guards seeing the others with Percy convinced them enough. We wouldn't dare wake you two up and ruin such a lovely moment," she smiled innocently.

"I know, right?" Silena sighed happily.

Annabeth frowned and ignored the last part of Katie's little speech. "The guards were chasing you?" Annabeth asked.

Clarisse glared at Travis. "Gee, I wonder why," she says, wanting to pulverize him. Sadly, he has his hands on some blackmail stuff of her and Chris so she wouldn't unless she was willing to be humiliated for the rest of her life. Annabeth seemed to have gotten the gist of what had happened to the trio.

Katie rolled her eyes. _Such _a nice boyfriend she has, but she didn't dare break up with Travis. There was something about him that she loves. Maybe it was his mischievous grin, or that glint in his eyes when he's about to get himself into trouble. Or maybe it's just his playful and childish self. She never exactly figured out why she loved him. She just did. Might as well let him off the hook this time.

Percy shifted in his sleep, smiling at a mortal dream of him and Annabeth at a beach. Cliché, yes, but he was enjoying the view of Annabeth on the beach during a sunset as they talked about stuff that didn't hint anything about their dangerous quest. The sun kept illuminating Annabeth's grey eyes and golden hair. Too bad Nico woke him up.

He kicked the back of his head and Percy's eyes snapped open; he rolled himself over to face his attacker, unaware of Annabeth still in his arms. He glared evilly when he noticed it was Nico.

"_Now _you wake up. Were you dreaming of Annabeth?" he teased, remembering that he had murmured her name not so long ago.

Grover bleated, backing away from Percy's icy stare to Nico. "I'm not a part of this!"

"Up, up, and up!" Thalia demanded Annabeth and Percy. "We need to get to your castle by noon. We told the guards to inform the queen that we'd be arriving soon. Oh, did I rhyme?"

"Apollo has blessed you?" Michael gasped dramatically, hands over his eyes. He didn't like lovey-dovey stuff, thus the view of Annabeth and Percy cuddling with each other. Being dramatic was both one of Michael's and Thalia's prime habit.

"Why would Apollo do that? She's a huntress. Artemis and Apollo hate each other," Nico frowned. "It's just a mere coincidence."

"She's a huntress," Clarisse agreed. "Meaning she can't date you." There were a lot of "Ooh, burn!" and "I feel sorry for you man," in their little crowd.

Thalia just rolled her eyes and began shouting again. "Get the Hades off your butt! We've got to go! Sheesh. We should wake Pollux too."

"What time is it?" Annabeth frowned. When she spoke, only then did Percy realize their embarrassing position. They must've been laughing at us before, Percy thought. He quickly unwrap his arms from Annabeth and got up. He gave a hand to Annabeth to help her stand up too and she took it. They both didn't let go, though.

Michael, who was still shielding his eyes from the view finally said, "Did they stop hugging each other?"

"Yes, you can open your eyes," Beckendorf says.

Michael did as told and sighed in relief. "Thank gods. That disgusted me; especially when the guards came. They kept saying how '_cute_' you two were together. Tch. Love…" Then he noticed the two holding hands. He covered his eyes again. "The pain!" was all he shouted to make both of them to let go of their hands.

"Love is a very good thing! Just because Drew dumped you in less than two days, doesn't mean you need to hate love all the time!" Silena pouted. "Besides, there are lots of other girls at Town. I don't even get what you see in Drew…"

"Hey! She's pretty!" Michael protested.

Silena raised an eyebrow at him. "She probably charm spoke you into liking her in the first place. I mean, you've _got _to like her other than just her…beauty," she shuddered. "Come on, what _do _you like about her other than her being…pretty…and caked with makeup?"

Michael blinked. "I don't remember…"

Grover played on his reed pipes, making a sharp sound to catch everyone's attention. Everyone faced him. Clarisse glared at him which caused Grover to bleat a bit before speaking. "We need to get to the castle now, don't we? It's around eleven-thirty in the morning."

"Is it?" Percy asked.

"We'll need to wake up _that guy_," Katie pointed a finger at Pollux's balled up form.

"I tried to wake him up already," Travis says. "Nothing works. Not even the lovely epic prank of… Uh… Forget I said anything."

"I'll carry him," Beckendorf suggested to save his butt.

Beckendorf picked up Pollux as if he weighed _less _than a feather, and began leading the way to the castle, Percy's home.

As they walked, Percy stared at Annabeth. He reflected back on their adventure so far, the times he tried to impress her and epically failing. Like the bow and arrow. He should've stuck with the sword. He was better with that. Then there was the time after their battle with a Chimera and Nico needed water. He wanted to show off his powers, but failed that too… Man, looking back, he did a lot of stupid things. But then he wanted to prove to her that he wasn't just a lousy _Seaweed Brain_. What could he do to prove her that? He liked her, no duh. He wouldn't deny that to himself (yes to his friends), but what could he do to get Annabeth's attention?

Percy's been thinking of what to do as they walked, and Annabeth became curious. She noticed Percy's rare thinking face. What was he thinking about? And so Annabeth did what she usually did: think. She assumed different possibilities of what Percy would even _want _concentrate so hard on. Maybe it had to do with their quest? That was possible. Or maybe it was what to say when he meets his mom again? That was possible too. What if it was a girl? Psh, no… It was only her, Katie, Thalia, Clarisse, and Silena on their quest. Three are already taken. That leaves Thalia, but she's huntress and likes Nico… They didn't come across any other girl. He couldn't be thinking of one… Agh, why is she even thinking about this? She can't jump to conclusions of what he could be wondering about. She pushed the thought away and began admiring the architecture of the city to distract herself.

Nico looked around the city Atlantis; his first time here. He quickly spotted a clothing store. They were on sale too. Lucky him. Beckendorf must've brought money, and they would probably give him a discount if Percy was with him.

"Hey! Let's go in there," Nico pointed.

Percy turned his head the store and his eyes gleamed. "Yes! I need a shirt."

Thalia rolled her eyes. "You guys better hurry up. You have money on you, right?"

"I do," Beckendorf says, just like Nico had predicted.

"I'll go see the queen," Grover said. "It's almost noon, and I'll have to tell her why you guys are taking so long."

"Thanks G-Man," Percy says, and Grover galloped off.

"Wait up! I'm following!" Travis shouted, and ran off after kissing Katie on the cheek. He probably went to check out the castle and look for something to steal or someone to prank on.

"Yay! There is stuff on sale!" Silena read the big signs that plastered the large windows. "Let's go try on some clothes," Silena declared, and dragged the girls off across the streets. The boys shrugged and followed them from behind.

They entered the store. No duh. It wasn't as big as the one back in Town Half-Blood, but they sure had various styles of clothing. Beckendorf handed everyone a twenty dollar bill to buy whatever they want. Except for Silena. He gave her sixty dollars. She _was _quite a shopper.

Percy just grabbed a simple and cheap blue V-neck shirt he found as soon as he entered off a rack and paid for it. Nico took a while browsing at some black jeans, but eventually picked one out. Beckendorf and Pollux didn't exactly buy anything. Pollux was still dead asleep and Beckendorf didn't need to buy anything at all, although he did ask Michael to get Pollux some new clothes for him to change into when he wakes up. The stench of alcohol made him gag. Michael just picked out a pair of jeans and a T-shirt for Pollux without even looking at it. For his clothes though, it took a _lot _longer. He soon decided on a pair of orange shorts and a white button-up T-shirt that quickly consumed his entire twenty dollars, _plus _Pollux's money as well.

The girls but Silena just wanted to sit, rest, and enjoy the AC they have. But _no_, Silena wanted to play dress-up. She shoved some clothes into their hands, and pushed them each into a separate dressing room. Then she was able to get one of the staff workers to hand over the keys to the dressing rooms. How that happened, no one knows. She locked the doors. The locks on the inside didn't work for them, so they were stuck. With no choice, Katie, Clarisse, and Annabeth began browsing through the clothes Silena had snatched off from the racks for them to choose from.

Annabeth wore a simple grey tank top and denim shorts. She knocked the door to get out. Silena unlocked it, and Annabeth walked out.

Silena examined her. "Hm…" She says. "That looks okay… Well, I'm sure Percy would like it. Come on, let's show him!"

"Wait, what?" Annabeth's eyes widened. "Oh no, no, no. I am _not _evenbuying this," she protested.

Too late. Percy just happened to walk by to check why the girls were taking so long.

"What a coincidence!" Silena grinned. Annabeth noticed her cell phone sticking out of her pocket. Demi-gods shouldn't use cell phones for their safety, unless it's for an emergency. She must've texted Beckendorf to get him to come… "Percy! How does Annabeth look?" she asked, pushing Annabeth in front of her.

Annabeth's face quickly turned red when Percy stared at her for a few seconds. She was nervous about what he would say. Would he tell her that she looked beautiful? Amazing? "You good look good," was all he says. Her heart felt like it deflated.

"Oh. Thanks," Annabeth replied with an obvious tone of disappointment. Percy didn't realize it though. His head was filled with ways of getting Annabeth to like him back (even though she does, but he doesn't know that yet).

Clarisse started banging on the door like mad. "LET ME OUT!" she thundered. Silena grinned and skipped off to unlock Clarisse's door. She stepped out with a red T-shirt, red bandana, and camouflage pants.

Silena frowned. "Where'd you get that? I never picked those out for you."

Clarisse shrugged in reply, went back into the room to change back into her old Town clothes and paid for her stuff. Then she walked off to find something amusing, or someone to pick on.

Thalia was able to punch the door down thanks to her lightning power. She practically fried the door into dust anyways. She was wearing a black shirt and black jeans to match it.

"Good," Silena nodded her head in agreement.

Thalia walked off to another change room to get back into her normal clothes, and then began chatting with Nico who bought his new pants.

Silena unlocked Katie's door and she came out holding the pile of clothes Silena had given her. "I don't have to try on _all _of them, do I?" she asked.

"Just whatever catches your eye, I guess," Silena replied.

Katie dropped the clothes onto the ground, revealing her in the same clothes she had on before: her Town Half-Blood shirt and jeans. "Good. I don't like any of them."

Silena scowled. "Come on! Just pick out some fresh clothes, will you? You don't want to stay in those ratty ones!"

Katie shrugged. "It doesn't matter," she said, and skipped off.

Annabeth turned away from the scene to realize that Percy had already walked off without saying a word. Did he not like her? Not even as a friend? She thought it didn't matter to Percy that their parents were rivals. Why did he just walk off like that? Annabeth felt her heart ache. It doesn't matter, she tried to convince herself. Besides, she wasn't supposed to like Percy in the first place, right?

Silena was aware of what Annabeth was feeling. She was obviously the daughter of Aphrodite, and she wanted to get Annabeth and Percy together in the beginning. But first things first, she has to get Percy to snap out of whatever daze he's in. Come to think of it, Percy's been acting pretty strange lately.

Percy was outside of the store, sitting on the bench with his new shirt on. What flowers should he give Annabeth? Tulips? Daisies? Red roses? No, red roses are over used. What about blue roses? He should ask Katie for that. You must be wondering what Percy's thinking right now. _The _Perseus Jackson wants to ask Annabeth out for dinner. Yes, you heard right. Because of all his reckless attempts to impress Annabeth, he decides that planning things might actually help even if it's not his style to.

Pollux has already woken up and changed into the clothes Michael had gotten him. Blue jeans and coincidently a white T-shirt that read, "Alcohol is the Solution to Everything." It matched him perfectly.

The girls (except for Katie) had already purchased their items and changed into them. Nico had slipped on his new pair of pants and Michael was begging Beckendorf to buy him some shades to make him look cooler. Beckendorf being a big softie did, and now Michael's roaming around the store hitting on some girls with cliché pick-up lines.

Everyone soon met up in front of the store with Michael exiting last.

"Finally!" Thalia cheered. "Let's go."

"Psh, I didn't take that long," Michael says.

"Sure, dude. Sure," Pollux says.

They strode off to the castle which didn't seem to take very long. People on the sidewalks and on the streets were staring that the group. They began whispering things to each other, especially the girls. They kept looking at Percy, whispered some stuff, and then began giggling. It was getting on Annabeth's nerves.

Thankfully, they've arrived and stood right outside Atlantis's castle. They were finally here. Unfortunately for Annabeth, a familiar person stumbled over them. Annabeth looked up to see the person she hated most. During their adventure, she had almost forgotten about them, despite the fact that she's lived with them almost her entire life. There stood in front of her was her step-family, staring at Annabeth in disbelief and utter shock.

Being humiliated the moment she woke up, Percy ignoring her, being forced to go shopping, and encountering her step-family? This was officially Annabeth's worst day of her life yet.

* * *

**I made a vow to update every week. And I've failed... How long has it been? Two and a half weeks? Gods, I feel terrible D:  
It's summer and I've been hoping to update a whole BUNCH of chapters and even finishing this thing in less than two weeks! But then I turned out to be busier than ever.  
I've got chiropractor appointments three times a week now because my dad took me there a few days ago I think. Turns out I've got a C Spiral spine... And I made a bet with my brother that my spine's more better than his because his posture is a lot more terrible.  
**

**Anyways, I've also got to do this community service thing. I need to complete forty hours to graduate high school (and 30 credits). I'm currently grade eight going to nine. LOL. Not in high school yet, but I'm doing it early so I won't have to do it later. Luckily, the community service thing I'm doing was for this summer school program for exactly 40 hours. Disadvantage for me: It's for Canto. I'm Mando. So I kind of stand out...and feel like a loner...But hey, my brother's with me and stuck in the same situation! Isn't that amazing? But he keeps shifting away from me as if I'm some sort of germ... If you're an Asian out there, tell me in a review if you're Canto or Mando! Or neither or both...  
**

**And plus I went to an amusement park with my friends... Psh, I need some fun, okay? It was fun though :D **

**Aaaannnywaaayss, I didn't edit. What? I updated! Be glad~**

**So, REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW! You know you want to. :D  
I'd love some positive (Oh! Look at that work to your left. Such an important word. Freaking POSITIVE) feedback. :)  
(Any negative ones and I shall imaginatively throw my "volunteer" tag at your face.) **


	23. Chapter 23: Trouble Makers

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO.**

* * *

**Love Quest – Chapter Twenty-Three**

Annabeth's stepmother was in furry, unaware of her company. She only focused on Annabeth and Annabeth only, blinding herself from anger. "How dare you! You ran away from home! We had to _hire _a maid to replace you for all the work you've left us! We gave you proper food and shelter! Is this how you repay your family?" Annabeth's stepmom growled.

Annabeth stayed calm as she continued to ramble on about her "horrible" behavior. Hades, she wasn't even listening to half of it and that wasn't like her at all, but Mrs. Chase was really boring her. She kept repeating the same things over and over again, just in different words. The group of demigods stared at the crazy lady as the twins looked at the demigods with interest.

Clarisse coughed rudely to interrupt her speech, catching Mrs. Chase's attention. "Who the Hades are you?" Clarisse raised an eyebrow at her with her arms crossed.

"Annabeth's mother," she replied coolly, glaring at Clarisse. She snorted. Has Annabeth been hanging out with these rude fools? Of course, she didn't exactly look at the group carefully enough.

"_Step_mother," Annabeth corrected with a snarl. There was no way _that_ creature was her real mother; no way in Tartarus.

"That doesn't matter!" her stepmom hissed. "We're going back home. Did you know how much money we had to pay for that maid? Not only are you now responsible for the domestic chores, you're going to have to get a job too, Missy! You need to earn back all that money back!"

"Excuse me?" Percy says in disbelief before Annabeth could snap at her. He was outraged by how she treated Annabeth. The way she talked to her like that sent his blood boiling. "Aren't you supposed to be her motherly figure? You aren't supposed to treat her that way! She's your stepdaughter! What kind of example are you setting up for your two sons over there?"

Mrs. Chase was about to snap at whomever had questioned her, but she stood there wide-eyed at Perseus Jackson, Prince of Atlantis. Only then did she realize Percy's presence. She didn't even notice him before! How could she not? Now she's in for some real trouble for angering someone apart of royalty. She straightened up and patted the dust off her dress. "Y-You're Majesty," she stuttered, thinking of an excuse. "You see, this girl over here has been a burden to our family for _years_, so I had punished her into doing some house chores. You wouldn't believe what she has done over the past decade; nothing but trouble, that girl. She's been very rude and-," but she's been cut off before she could continue her lies.

"_Pardon_?" Percy spat at her, mocking her sudden formality. "I know Annabeth and she is _not_ like that. How dare _you _for treating Annabeth like dust on a windowsill. You are _not _and never _will_ be a mother to her or a guardian. If I ever see you again within Annabeth's reach, I will throw you to the dungeon without hesitation, understood?" he snapped at her. Mrs. Chase nodded her head in reply, completely speechless. She backed up a few strides away from Annabeth after Percy spoke. Bobby and Matthew were gawking at the prince as if seeing him in person was the coolest thing in the universe.

"Whoa! Anniebeth!" Bobby said. "You're friends with _the _prince? That is so cool!"

"That is _wicked_," Matthew corrected, and high-fived Bobby. Mrs. Chase gave a warning glare at the twins, but they were too engrossed with the idea that her sister was friends with Prince Perseus to notice.

Percy gave them a small smile and flashed grin to Annabeth as she rolled her eyes, but she was inwardly thrilled that Percy wasn't really ignoring her at all; Nico was spacing out as Thalia glared at Annabeth's stepmom's behavior; Beckendorf and Silena were busy staring into each other's eyes, and Michael and Pollux both looked extremely bored. They kept staring at the castle, wondering if they were ever going to go in.

Travis spotted the group outside from a window and he soon came running out Percy's castle to meet the others. When he reached the group, he noticed the three strangers but was more interested with the identical looking boys. Travis was staring at the twins as if his life depended on it, forgetting to greet his friends as Katie stifled a laugh.

"Whoa!" Travis says. "You guys are twins? I have a twin too!"

Bobby looked up to the brown-curly haired boy. "Really? Where?" he asked excitedly as Matthew hopped up and down. They've never met another pair of twins before.

"He's back at Town. Probably hitting on chicks," Travis shrugged casually.

Matthew frowned. "I don't believe you," he says. Bobby shook his head, agreeing with his brother.

Clarisse was clearly amused by this. She watched the three argue like a television show, wondering when they're going to start a fight.

"I do too! He's younger than me by the way, but he won't admit it," Travis said.

"Bobby's younger than me," Matthew replied to Travis, beaming with pride.

"Am not! I'm older!" Bobby protested, crossing his arms.

Annabeth's stepmother glared dangerously at the twins. She wanted to show the prince that her family was better-behaved than Annabeth; that she was innocent and Annabeth was not. She wanted to prove that somehow and get on the prince's good side. Maybe he would give her riches and gold if she befriended the prince. They didn't stop bickering though, causing the group to chuckle.

The laughter slapped Nico back to Earth. "Huh? What happened? Oh." Nico stared at the little twins who continued their argument. Nico shrugged it off, not finding it that amusing. He began thinking, and the first thought his mind wandered to was Thalia. He began to list things he knew about Thalia mentally to entertain himself as people around him chattered. He then started to wonder if he had feelings for Thalia, more than a friend.

Annabeth's stepmother fumed in the corner as the twins and demigods were playfully teasing each other and talked about stuff she didn't bother about, like where Annabeth has been the entire time she left. Feeling of no use there, she stomped off leaving her own children behind, hoping they would follow. However, they didn't even detect her disappearance. They continued to chatter away and Annabeth quickly forgave the two for being little rascals before because Percy thought they were pretty cool.

"Can we go now?" Pollux complained with a yawn.

"Totally," Michael nodded his head, acting all cool as he high-fived Pollux. What? First impressions matter and he wanted the twins to look up to him as a god, which kind of worked.

"Dude! Nice sunglasses!" Bobby pointed at Michael with a silly grin.

"Can I try it?" Matthew asked eagerly.

"Can _I _try it?" Bobby said, pushing his brother away.

"Can _we_ _leave_?" Pollux groaned. "I'm starving!" His stomach then growled to prove his point.

"_Somebody's_ in a grumpy mood," Thalia wagged a finger at him like scolding a puppy having an accident in the kitchen.

"I guess that's what alcohol does to you," Nico shrugged. "I should try some," he muttered to himself. It could probably somehow catch Thalia's attention like with Pollux...

Percy heard that and smacked the back of his head in disappointment. "Alright, let's go. You guys too," he says to the twins as if he never noticed Nico's glare.

They entered the castle as everyone but Percy gawked at the building in awe. Percy greeted some of the guards as they walked to the throne room. Travis said that Grover and Queen Jackson would be waiting there. When they've arrived, they found Sally sitting on the throne as she chatted with Grover with two guards eavesdropping on them.

"Mom!" Percy whined, and Sally stopped talking about Percy's embarrassing moments as a baby to notice him standing by the doors with his other friends.

"Oh! More visitors! Come on in! It's good to see you again, Annabeth!" Sally grinned cheekily at her.

"Same here, Sally," Annabeth smiled back to her.

As if remembering, Thalia, Nico, Beckendorf, Silena, and practically everyone but Grover, Percy, and Annabeth, kneeled down to her Majesty.

Sally just laughed. "Get up! There's no need to bow." Everyone did as told, shifting their feet slightly, feeling uncomfortable. Speaking to a queen is somewhat close to an intimidating god. "So you're on a quest?" Sally asked the group, and several heads nodded. Bobby and Matthew looked at her, completely confused. "I see…" she murmured to herself.

"Bobby and Matthew here are mortal; Annabeth's stepbrothers," Percy says to his mom, pointing at the twins. The two looked down to their feet, blushing slightly at the sudden attention everyone was giving them.

"Oh! Are you two? Well then, why don't we have a feast, hm? All of you might as well discuss about the quest to me. Do Bobby and Matthew know about the gods?" The queen asked. The identical twins tilted their heads in confusion. "Ah, then we might have to explain that to them too."

The demigods nodded their heads silently, agreeing with her.

"So when's the feast?" Grover asked after a moment of quietness. Sally chuckled at his appetite and Grover blushed from embarrassment. The people from Town Half-Blood gave Grover a knowing look.

"Well, dinner should be prepared soon. I'll have some people to give you a tour around the castle as we wait. I need a moment with Perseus here," she says with a stern voice.

Percy's face paled. He gulped. "What did I do?"

Everyone laughed but the mortals in the room. Only they knew that Percy could get himself into trouble so easily.

Sally clapped her hands loudly and a couple maids walked into the room. "Please show our guests around. Oh, Annabeth. I would like you to stay as well."

She nodded her head and stayed behind as everyone left, including the two guards guarding the place giving them complete privacy.

"So, Annabeth," Sally started, a minute after everybody left. "Percy didn't give you a hard time did he?"

Annabeth laughed and Percy frowned. "Of course not!" Percy protested.

"Not too much," Annabeth corrected with a slight smirk.

"I see… I take it that you two made it to Town Half-Blood?" She asked.

"Yes," Annabeth nodded her head. "Otherwise we wouldn't have gotten the quest."

"Mhm…" Sally says. Another moment of silence. "So would you like to hear some of Percy's baby stories?"

"Mom!" Percy complained, but Annabeth laughed and eagerly nodded her head.

"Okay, okay!" Sally says to her son. "Anyways, what I wanted to ask you…Ahem. Are you two…? You know? Dating?"

Annabeth's and Percy's eyes widened completely red in the face. "N-no!" Annabeth stuttered. "We're not," she regained her posture, but she said it with a bit of disappointment. Sally detected it, but Percy was oblivious to notice. He just nodded his head a tad bit sadly with a small frown on his face.

He wasn't quite listening to the rest of their conversation. Percy kept wondering, how would he ask Annabeth out for dinner if they're having a feast with the questers, Annabeth's stepbrothers, and his mom? Gee, that would be romantic. Maybe he could convince her to sneak out with him? That would work…

"Percy? _Percy_!" Annabeth shouted in his face. She then decided to punch his shoulder.

"Huh? Wah? Ow! I'm awake!" Percy says, cradling his right shoulder in pain. "Why do you have to be so strong?"

Annabeth just rolled her eyes. "We're heading for the dining room. Your mom's meeting us there. She's gathering the others first. You weren't listening to a single thing, did you?"

"Sorry," Percy says, hanging his head down.

Annabeth shook her head, and grabbed his arm with both her hands. "Come on! We should go!" She began to haul him towards the door, but he wouldn't move. "Percy? Is something wrong?" she asked, sounding concerned. Maybe he was ignoring her? Maybe avoiding her? Does he want her to go on without him? Panic began to swell in her chest. So he _was_. But he was her first best friend! He couldn't–

"Hey, Annabeth? Do you want to sneak out?" Percy asked after a moment of hesitation. He's been debating in his mind whether he should ask her or not, but he figured taking Annabeth out to dinner was better than being stuck with family and friends, talking about a depressing quest.

Annabeth was startled by what Percy had just said. "Sneak…out?" Annabeth asked with uncertainty. "Well, isn't that what we tried to do when we first met?" she smirked with humor.

Percy laughed at the memory. "Okay, so my mom caught us that day. It doesn't mean we won't now," he says trying to convince her.

"We have to talk about the quest. Maybe one of our friends found out about the location of the gods, or maybe got a hint of it. We also have to tell your mom too," Annabeth says, rambling about why they shouldn't leave.

"Dinner," Percy cuts her off. "Want to have dinner with me at a restaurant? Just the two of us?" Annabeth didn't answer for a minute, and his courage began to deflate. "You know…if you want, that is…"

"As a date?" Annabeth suddenly asked, biting her lip to keep her from smiling. Percy nodded his head in reply, and Annabeth then broke into a grin. "Alright. Where to?"

* * *

Thalia, Nico, Pollux, Grover, and Clarisse were walking with their tour guide, Lindsey. Grover was completely interested, unlike Pollux and Clarisse who looked like they were about to fall asleep. Thalia and Nico were whispering amongst themselves, not really paying attention to Lindsey at all.

"So basically, we're going to help Percy and Annabeth get together," Thalia says. "Only the girls but Annabeth knows about it. Want to help? I'm sure Silena would like more people joining our little group."

Nico chuckled lightly. "You know, soon everyone in this quest group would end up trying to help the two get together. But why bother? If they like each other, they'll get together themselves, won't they?"

"They're as stubborn as pigs. Come on, you expect that to happen? Like Percy has the guts to ask Annabeth out to dinner," Thalia smirked. Only if she knew…

"True…" Nico says thoughtfully. "Alright. I'm in. Only because you asked me, okay?"

"Great!" Thalia says a bit too loudly. When she noticed, she slapped her hand over her mouth, trying to pretend she didn't just say something.

Everyone turned to look at the two. "Something you want to share?" Lindsey asked with an eyebrow raised and an amused smirk on her face.

"Er, no, it's nothing," Thalia says a bit too quickly.

"Planning yourselves a date?" Clarisse grinned evilly. Lindsey's smirk turned into a wide grin as well.

Grover bleated. "Shouldn't we continue our tour? I mean, look at the living room! Isn't it lovely? All those well designed sofas! They look good enough to eat!"

Pollux lazily looked over at Grover. "Sofas? Nah, I want some wine right now," he yawned. "Gods, I don't think I've gotten enough sleep."

"Aren't you a little under-aged for alcohol?" Lindsey asked Pollux with her arms crossed and a stern look on her face.

"So?" he says. "Does it matter? Who're you? My mother?"

"It does matter, Drunk Boy," Clarisse guffawed loudly. "Against the law!"

"Aw, Styx. Like I care," he says with another yawn. "I need wine. Then I'd be in the mood to parh-tay!" he fist pumped the air.

"Um, the tour?" Grover reminded nervously as he fiddled with his fingers.

"Yes, we need to continue. No time to rest! Dinner will be served very soon," Lindsey says cheerfully.

Grover's eyes lit up at the sentence. "Will there be enchiladas?" he wondered.

Lindsey shrugged. "Who knows? Whatever the chef's in the mood of making. Come on, kids!" she sang happily.

"I'm not a kid!" Clarisse growled with Thalia scowling, but they both followed everybody to the ball room.

* * *

Travis, Katie, Michael, Beckendorf, and Silena were following their tour guide, Kayla. They were visiting the bedrooms and were soon headed towards the swimming pool. Silena and Kayla were getting along fabulously, talking about make-up and latest in-fashion dresses. Katie's mind felt like exploding; she didn't care about make-up and special designed clothing, and there was no way Travis could disagree. Beckendorf was admiring the castle and whatnot, hardly paying attention to their conversation. Michael was scowling at everything.

"Ew, what is _that_?" Michael would say every three minutes. It was especially worse when Kayla showed them the castle's grand bathroom. Michael was scowling at the toilet for gods knows how long. You wouldn't believe Michael's colourful vocabulary. His mouth kept sprouting out profanities at the squeaky-clean toilet as if it would talk back, and it was obviously an inanimate object. _Pft_, like the washroom was Narnia.

They soon ran into Bobby and Matthew who were wandering around the castle with the two guards earlier. From what it seems like, the guards were telling the two about Percy's past from what they've heard about in the throne room before. They were in such a deep conversation that they didn't notice walking by the group. Katie and Travis stopped walking for a minute to give a strange look at them as they went away. They gave each other a look and shrugged, continuing to walk on.

As they reached the swimming pool, Travis couldn't take it anymore. Silena and Kayla were talking about some guy named "Trevor" and how he's famous for his clothing designs. He doesn't know the guy, and he isn't even familiar with his work!

"And you know this shirt I'm wearing? Specially made by Trevor," Silena bragged to Kayla. "Most of my clothes are."

Okay, so maybe he was familiar with his work…

"Oh my gods! No way! _The Trevor _made that for you?" Kayla gasped.

"Oh yeah," Silena nodded her head. "We're close friends."

Beckendorf was aware of their conversation about this "Trevor" and he wasn't concerned or jealous at all. Trevor's a great guy, he really is. Beckendorf knows him. He's also Silena's half-brother, so that's why he didn't care. Trevor has given Travis most of his work before to sell them to companies outside of Town.

Styx… So maybe he did know Trevor…

"Oh my gods! Is he cute? Trevor's never shown himself in public before," Kayla says.

And they just kept blabbing. Katie was getting a migraine. "Can we leave?" she eventually whispered to her boyfriend.

Travis smirked. "I thought you'd never ask," he says. But before he could grab Katie's hand, somebody began to complain.

"Oh, that is _gross_!" Michael shouted. "What the Hades is _that_?" he pointed at the life jackets.

"Gross? Those can save you," Beckendorf say to him.

"Those fat looking vests? How can they save me?" Michael scoffed with his arms crossed in disbelief.

Beckendorf snatched a life jacket and handed it to Michael. "Wear it," he demanded, but Michael shook his head in disgust. "Then hold it."

Michael carefully took the life jacket from Beckendorf's hands and clutched it tightly. "Okay, now what do I do with this junk?" he asks.

"Don't worry. I'll give you a demonstration. Just don't let go of that life jacket no matter what," Beckendorf said, and pushed Michael into the pool as they were passing the deep end before he could speak.

Michael sank deep into the waters but quickly floated back up, breathing heavily. "_What was that_? Were you trying to _kill _me?" Michael exclaimed as he coughed out some water.

Beckendorf raised his hands up innocently as the group laughed. Not as hard as Travis though. By the time Michael climbed out of the pool, Katie and Travis had already snuck away from the group.

* * *

Lindsey was happily showing everyone the ball room, although there wasn't much to show. It was practically just empty space to dance in; the dance floor. Pollux asked if somebody could crank up some music so he could "_parh-tay_," but Lindsey was scolding him, saying that he can dance after dinner.

Thalia thought she was such a _mother _to everybody. Nico on the other hand, enjoyed being "mothered" since his real mother had died when he was young, and he missed that feeling of having a mom. Well, alive. Thalia kept whispering to Nico about how irritating Lindsey was, but he kept disagreeing with her which kind of bugged her out. Why was he sticking up for Lindsey and not _her_? Wasn't Nico her friend?

Thalia was getting bummed out about the "Lindsey" problem. Whenever she called Nico's name, his eyes would sparkle. Whenever Lindsey put her hand on Nico's shoulder to get his attention, he would give her that stupid grin. There was nothing she could do to get Nico to notice her! And now, whenever they talk, it's all about _Lindsey_. She's beginning to hate her more by the second.

Thalia walked close to Grover and Clarisse as Nico followed Lindsey by her side like some dog. She was eyeing Nico and Lindsey closely like a hawk. Pollux was walking slowly behind, upset that he couldn't "_parh-tay_" just yet.

Lindsey was going to soon show everybody the swimming pool. She was about to open the doors to the place when it opened themselves, surprising everybody. This was a medieval-themed city. Why would they have automatic doors in a castle? But when the door was completely wide open, it revealed Travis and Katie holding hands with wide eyes, shocked that they were caught.

"And where are you two going?" Lindsey asked politely with a raised eyebrow after looking behind them to spot the rest of Kayla's group. She tapped her foot impatiently on the ground for an answer.

"Um, washroom," Travis lied. Katie wanted to smack his face.

"Oh really? Both of you? You do realize that the swimming pool has its own washrooms?" Lindsey says with a monotonous voice.

"Oh no, we went to the washroom over there, before we came here," Katie says innocently. Clarisse gave her an odd look, already seeing through her lie. Katie returned Clarisse a pleading look to keep her mouth shut. She just shrugged and yawned in reply. "I dropped a necklace somewhere along the way. It's valuable to me. My boyfriend and I were going to go find it." Travis gave Katie an impressed look. She'd be excellent if she agreed to join his pranking team. Too bad she turned him down the first, second, and third time he's asked her.

"I see…" Lindsey murmured to herself. "Have you told Kayla?"

"She seems busy," Katie shrugged her shoulders, gesturing to Kayla and Silena talking about who-knows-what.

Lindsey sighed. "That girl… All right, you two go on ahead. No funny business, got it?"

"Got it," Travis and Katie nodded their heads enthusiastically, happy that Katie's lie worked. She's a natural. Travis couldn't believe how lucky he was to have her as a girlfriend.

The two quietly walked off, pretending to look for a nonexistent necklace.

Nico tugged on Lindsey's sleeve like a little boy. He leaned into her ear and whispered, "You wouldn't want to trust Travis. He's usually up to no good."

Thalia scowled as she watched him whisper into Lindsey's ear. She nodded at Nico and whispered something back to him. He agreed with something and began to walk away from her. Thalia let out a breath of relief until she realized he was walking away from the entire group, thus also walking away from Thalia herself. Feeling furious, she followed Nico when everybody else entered the next room, too distracted to notice her leave.

* * *

Sally had bumped into Bobby and Matthew, as well as the two guards while searching for everyone. She notified them about dinner being ready about now and asked if they've seen the others. They all shrugged, not knowing. Sally thanked them and said to get ready for their feast soon, and they then left to the dining room.

Sally followed the hall until she encountered a three-way path. As she pondered on which way to take, she found Travis and Katie tiptoeing off somewhere. She hid behind the walls so that they wouldn't see her. Luckily, they didn't. She was about to leave her hiding spot to follow them when they left, but quickly hid herself again when she heard voices. She poked her head out to see who they were.

It was a boy and a girl. She recognized them from the throne room earlier, both her son's friends.

"Nico! Gods! Where are you going?" a female voice asked him exasperatedly.

Nico stopped walking to face her. "I'm following Travis and Katie for Lindsey," Nico replied.

"_Lindsey_? Why is it always about _Lindsey_?" the girl growled at him. "Why do you even care about her? She's just some pathetic maid in this castle!"

Nico scowled at her. "Is that what you think, Thalia? Well, whatever. I'm going to follow those two." Nico stomped off towards Katie's and Travis's direction, fuming at the fight he just had with his friend.

"Ugh!" Thalia grunted. "Nico! Get back here!" Thalia stormed off to follow Nico.

Sally curiously watched the two leave, wondering if she should follow them. But if they came from the other direction, doesn't that mean the others are there? She decided to head for the swimming pool to gather the rest of the people first.

The queen found the rest of the people talking to each other by the pool. She approached them and cleared her throat to catch their attention. "Dinner should be ready now. I came here so that I could personally inform you all," she grinned.

Lindsey smiled thankfully at her. "Thank you, you're Majesty. But there are currently some people missing."

"I saw two boys and two girls run off somewhere along the way. They went towards the direction of the dining room. Perhaps they're there?" Sally wondered. "No matter, I'll send out some people to search for them. We should go now. The food will get cold if we don't."

Everybody agreed and followed the queen to the dining room so they could enjoy their feast. However, when they entered the room, there were only the two guards and the young twins.

Sally frowned at this. "I asked Percy and Annabeth to wait here for us," she says. "You two," she pointed at the guards. "Have you seen the prince or anybody walk by here?"

The guards shook their heads. "No, ma'am."

Sally sighed while everybody had worried looks on their faces. "Where did those trouble-makers run off to?" she asked herself.

* * *

**I apologize for the late update! But here it is! I only edited the beginning... But yeah. I made it longer for you guys because I haven't updated last week, have I?  
Anyways, here it is! My update schedule's been messy lately. I can't exactly promise you that I'll update next week, but yeah, I'll try my best!  
**

**I hoped you enjoyed this chapter! Any ideas where Travis and Katie are sneaking off too? Hm? Put your predictions into a review! I certainly love reviews~  
Well, I don't have much to say here. Just REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW! **


	24. Chapter 24: Triple Date

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO.**

…**Was it that obvious? Okay, so most of you predicted correctly; I'm way too predictable, aren't I? I won't spoil it for you, so read on! And if you realized that your prediction was exactly or close to what I've written, then congratulations. You deserve a cookie. Not that I'll really give you one. :)**

**And a very sincere apology for not updating earlier. My internet crashed. Gah. I don't know how I lived. Plus, I was sort of occupied with Harry Potter books… Heh heh?**

* * *

**Love Quest – Chapter Twenty-Four**

So there was Percy and Annabeth, roaming around the castle until they met the exit. As they neared the doors, a thought smacked Percy right in the face, and he remembered about the blue roses. He wanted to give Annabeth those flowers, (blue roses! It's unique, right? It'll impress Annabeth for sure!) but where would he get them? He dragged a smiling Annabeth behind him as they ran through the doors and towards the garden at the back.

"Where're we going, Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth asked him in an amused voice, looking around at the place. She's never been here, of course.

The castle's garden was scattered with flowers. The gardener here wasn't very organized, but a very good friend of the Queen's. Though, lucky for Percy, most of the flowers here were categorized by colours, sort of. He spotted a small blue patch of flowers not so far from where they stood that seemed to be mixed with a couple of yellow and red ones.

"Stay here," Percy demanded, and surprisingly, Annabeth did as told, looking at him very curiously.

He jogged over to the flowers and quickly scanned for a rose. There weren't any though, so sighing exasperatedly, he snatched some forget-me-nots (because they're blue) and sheepishly handed them to Annabeth.

"You're so spontaneous," Annabeth laughed, causing Percy to be unsure if that was a good or bad thing. She took the flowers from him happily and blushed as she remembered the meaning of those flowers.

"You like them?" Percy asks hopefully.

"Yes," Annabeth says, hugging the flowers. "Thank you," she mutters quietly, shifting her feet from side to side, looking at the ground. Her face was getting redder by the second. No one has ever given her flowers before, much less some forget-me-nots; it was flattering.

Percy let out a relieved sigh. Then he realized he's never exactly planned where to go and eat. He thought of going to a fancy restaurant before, but judging by their current clothes, that would be weird. Styx, he hardly planned anything at all. What's the point of a plan when you haven't even _planned_ anything at all?

"Um, anywhere you want to eat?" he asked for a suggestion.

Annabeth nervously played with the end of her tank top, biting her lip as she thought. It was her first date ever, and she wanted it to be perfect, especially if it's with Percy. But that moment got awkward. They silently stared at each other, wondering what to do now. The silence was so deafening it made Percy feel bad since he asked Annabeth to be here in the first place, and it was getting boring.

"Um," Percy started, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "Well, I know this place with awesome burgers," he suggested.

Annabeth nodded her head in agreement with a small smile so Percy took her hand again and led the way. As they did so, Percy poked the forget-me-nots into her hair and began to compliment her, which led to Annabeth insulting him; their way of flirting, some people could say.

* * *

Travis and Katie were gliding excitedly towards the exit as if they were skating on ice. The floors were just mopped and very slippery. Thalia and Nico were having trouble catching up because they kept slipping, and surprisingly, both Katie and Travis has not even caught sight of them yet. Though, they've been scolded by some maid who just cleaned up the place for sliding down the hallway.

They quickly reached the doors and fled the castle, Nico and Thalia still trying to catch up. But, it was their turn to get scolded by the maid, an even longer lecture included, giving Katie and Travis the chance to slip out of sight. No pun intended.

Katie who stopped to catch her breath told Travis that maybe they should go back.

"What?" Travis gapped. "We just left the place! Come on, let's go somewhere fun."

"But they're probably waiting for us at the dining room," Katie protested.

"If its lunch you're worried about, we could grab a bite first. I'm starving too," Travis reassured her, but Katie rolled her eyes. Before she could argue again, Travis carried Katie over his shoulder and began running towards the best fast food restaurant in Atlantis as if he was trying to kidnap some girl.

At that moment, Nico and Thalia burst out of the front doors, both panting in irritation.

"Stupid maids," Thalia muttered.

Nico ignored her, obviously giving her the silence treatment, and continued to chase the silly clown and his girlfriend towards the burger place.

* * *

In the castle's dining room, everybody was properly seated except for those six missing people. It was very quiet as people eyed each other, wondering what to do.

The two guards who previously were with Bobby and Matthew were standing by the door, shifting their feet uncomfortably. They had just sent some other people to go searching for them in the castle, Queen's orders. The maids who had given the demigods (plus satyr) a tour around the place were two of the people sent searching for the kids.

Silena was awkwardly staring the reflection of her plate, whereas Beckendorf was examining the fancy designs of the fork and knifes there. Pollux was staring at the glass longingly as if wine would appear in it. Grover sat next to the queen, fidgeting slightly at Percy's and Annabeth's disappearance; Michael was taking a nap, face to plate; Clarisse's eye was twitching in aggravation.

"Can't we just eat without them?" Clarisse grunted.

"I suppose… I guess it's their loss that they've decided to skive dinner," Sally agreed.

"B-But what if they didn't mean to on purpose? W-What if something happened to them?" Grover bleated nervously.

"Come on, Goat Boy. I thought you were hungry?" Clarisse slouched and crossed her arms, sitting in a very rude position as if she was trying to provoke a dragon to eat her.

"A-Alright…" Grover muttered.

Sally called in some people to serve their lovely lunch, and the food was mouthwatering. It was like a buffet, but somehow, even better. The desserts were fruits, such as strawberries, and a chocolate fountain to dip them in. There were all sorts of beverages, from water to wine (to Pollux's delight). Clarisse instantly filled her cup with root beer. There was spaghetti and enchiladas (to _Grover's _delight), and a bunch of foods that would include your favourites.

Everybody dug in, completely forgetting about their manners, especially in front of the queen. But Sally just grinned and began to pile her plate with some mashed potatoes.

* * *

Percy and Annabeth sat in a booth, waiting for their order to be taken. They chatted about random things, not remembering how they got from one topic to a completely unrelated subject.

"No really! That jellybean seriously tasted weird," Percy insisted.

"Well if it was grey and it tasted weird, wouldn't it be expired?" Annabeth raised an eyebrow at him.

"What? No it's not. Travis gave it to me when we were walking into the cas…Oh. I shouldn't have trusted him," he muttered the last part to himself.

Annabeth laughed at his loyalty. He gets way too easily convinced into doing things his friends asks him to do. "Oh, Percy. How could you have forgotten he was a Stoll?"

Percy rubbed the back of his neck embarrassingly. "He said it tasted like pepper…"

"And you really wanted to eat that?" Annabeth grinned.

"Well…I've never tried a pepper flavoured jellybean before…"

They continued to laugh and talk until a waitress came to ask what they want. Annabeth noticed her staring at Percy with great interest.

"Aren't you the prince?" she gasped.

"Um, er…yeah?" Percy says. "Can we take our order now?"

"Yes, yes! Absolutely!" says the redhead. "I'm Rachel by the way. Rachel Elizabeth Dare! My dad's one of the richest dukes in the kingdom, so I'm sure you would recognize my last name. But, it's a pleasure to meet you!"

"You too, I guess," says Percy awkwardly. "Anyways, three cheeseburgers for me, and just one for her."

Rachel turned to look at Annabeth, and her expression read as if she had just noticed her. "Oh," Rachel's smiled faltered a bit once her eyes wandered to the blue flowers in her hair. "I didn't know you had company. So one cheeseburger for you, Miss?" she says brightly again.

"Yes, thank you," Annabeth replied stiffly. It was just something about the way she looks at Percy that makes her skin prickle.

When she left, Percy continued their conversation about grey jellybeans in enchiladas, which the topic soon evolved into Grover.

* * *

Travis slammed the door open to the restaurant, accidently with a bit too much force which caused it to bang loudly against the wall, catching almost everyone's attention in the place. The people working there grimaced at him. They seemed to be wondering why some strange boy was carrying a girl like a potato sack in a place that sold burgers.

Travis placed Katie down so that people would stop staring more. Almost instantly, Katie spotted Percy and Annabeth among the crowd.

"Hey, Travis? What are _they _doing here?" Katie gestured towards the merry couple who seems to be arguing about which god/goddess seems more supreme.

Travis gapped at the sight. "Are they – Are they on a _date_?" he whispered in complete shock, as if it was the most extreme secret in the entire universe.

"It seems so," Katie replied. "Maybe we should leave them to themselves."

But half her sentence was overpowered by Travis's voice who was excitedly saying, "Let's ruin it!"

Before Katie could protest again, Travis hurriedly dragged her towards their booth. He was a child of Hermes after all; he was pretty light on his feet.

"Hello," Travis says casually, slipping into a spot beside Percy.

"Hey," Katie says, playing along with Travis, and sat next to Annabeth. Though, she sent a glare at him. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Oh, we, uh…" Annabeth blushed. "We're on a date." The words that escaped from her lips gave her stomach a warm feeling. She still couldn't believe she was actually on a date with _Percy_. What would mother say? Then a thought bounced into her head. "What about you two?"

"Gah, a tour around the castle? That's boring. We wanted some fresh air," Travis answered.

Annabeth looked over at Katie who shrugged in reply. "Silena was talking about cosmetics and fashion. I had to leave."

Annabeth nodded her head in understanding. Percy rubbed his invisible evil villain beard on his chin.

"Hm…" he says. "Interesting…"

Annabeth kicked his leg under the table and laughed. Before Travis and Katie had arrived, they somehow started the subject on heroes and super villains, so the other two don't quite get why they were laughing.

But, their happy moment was soon ruined by this time, Nico and Thalia. They slammed the door open like how Travis had did earlier, catching several people's attention.

"Whoa. Why's the door so light?" Thalia asked in slight surprise.

"There they are!" Nico pointed at Travis and Katie, forgetting about the silent treatment he was giving her.

"Wait. Who are the other…Holy Zeus, is that Percy and Annabeth?" Thalia gapped.

Travis, one of the people who turned their heads to the loud slam of the door, was just waving at them in a happy jolly way, urging them to come closer. He was unaware that they were just going to drag them off back to the castle.

Nico stormed towards the four, and he was about to shout at them if Travis hadn't interrupted. "Hey!" Travis says. "We can have a triple date!"

"W-Wah?" Nico sputtered as Thalia's jaw dropped, both flushing completely red.

"You know, a triple date. Like a group date? Three couples? A date? Together?" Travis explained.

"I don't think that's why they seem so thunderstruck," Percy says. And he slowly broke into a grin and turned towards Annabeth. "Get it? Thunderstruck? Huh?"

Annabeth tried to suppress her grin, but seemed to have failed. "Really Percy? That's extremely mature of you," but she laughed afterwards.

Thalia glowered at them. She sat next to Katie anyways, tired from the running.

"Come on, sit with us!" Travis encouraged. "Hey, scoot over." Percy moved over and Travis patted on the seat beside him. "Don't worry, Nico. I won't bite. Do I look like a hellhound to you?"

Thalia and Annabeth raised a brow at Travis, but smiled a bit. Katie stifled her giggle as Percy and Travis grinned up at him, beaming.

Nico didn't find this amusing at all. Oh, no.

"We're not here for some stupid date," Nico crossed his arms. "You all need to get back to the castle. The feast should be starting by now. Don't you want to go?"

"Hm…" Travis hummed thoughtfully. "Well, there'd be more food…but then we have to deal with Clarisse, Pollux, and Michael. Plus Grover, I guess. The way he eats is monstrous; not like a cute little goat at all. Silena talks too much about clothes, and Beckendorf's usually quiet. Nah, the triple date seems more fun, doesn't it? Plus, I like hamburgers."

"I don't!" Katie says. "I'll just get some salad. Did you two already order?"

Percy and Annabeth nodded their heads.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Thalia raised her hands up for them to slow down. "You're saying that Annabeth and Percy are on a _date_?"

"Well, duh," Travis replied. "What else would I have meant?"

"You had the guts to actually askher out on a _date_?" Thalia says to Percy.

He was red and shifting slightly on his spot. "W-Well…Is that supposed to be a bad thing?"

"No, but you actually –?" Thalia was about to repeat again.

"Oh shut up and join us," Travis grinned.

"Anything you want to eat, Thals?" Katie asked her.

"We're not eating here!" Nico fumed.

"Uh…" a voice behind him started. Everybody all turned to Rachel with a tray of food. "Hi. Did this table turn from a group of two into a six? Anything else you want to order?" she asked everyone else as she placed Annabeth's and Percy's meal onto the table.

"No, we were just leaving," Nico says curtly.

"Oh. That's too bad. But those burgers still has to be paid," Rachel replied, jabbing a thumb at Percy's and Annabeth's burgers.

The group was quiet for a moment, looking through their pockets for some money. Percy and Annabeth had enough to pay for their food with extra change to buy something else; it was from the money Beckendorf gave. Katie still had her twenty, and Travis's pocket was empty. Thalia had a few dollars, but Nico wouldn't check his money. After a while of counting, Percy decided to speak up.

"Can we also have a cup of coke?" Percy asked.

"I'd like Sprite," Annabeth said as Rachel scribbled down their orders.

"I want orange juice," Katie says, browsing through the menu.

"Hey, is there hot chocolate?" Travis wondered.

Nico's eye twitched. "We aren't ordering anything! We're leaving!"

"Hey, come on," Thalia says, looking through the menu with Katie. "This can't be that bad. I want coke too."

The grumpy Nico sighed, feeling a bit defeated, plopped down to the spot next to Travis.

"I told you I wouldn't bite," he teased. He got punched for that.

Soon after, Travis was happily eating his own Angus burger with a black eye on his face. Katie was enjoying her healthy lunch, and the children of the Big Three gobbled up their cheeseburgers pretty quickly. Annabeth took her time eating.

"That was good," Nico said, patting his stomach happily.

"I thought you didn't want to eat here?" Thalia asked him in an amused tone of voice.

"Uh, well, Travis told me to sit," Nico protested.

"But," Travis began. "I didn't say you _have _to stay. You could've left and gone back to the castle yourself and tattle on us with your big mouth."

"Hey!"

"I never actually asked, but why do have flowers in your hair?" Katie wondered, changing the subject.

"Oh, uh," Annabeth stuttered, her face feeling hot. "Percy did that…"

"You gave her flowers?" Thalia asked him. "I never thought you had the guts."

"I have guts! Can't you shut up about it now? Gods…" Percy muttered.

"Why forget-me-nots?" Katie asked curiously with a grin.

Percy shrugged. "Well, they're blue."

"Hm…Funny, funny," she says, grin stuck on her face as if it was permanent.

"What's funny?" Nico wondered with huge curiosity.

"Well, Annabeth, do you know the meaning of forget-me-nots?" Katie asked innocently, blinking.

"Um, well..." Annabeth stared off into space, her face red as ever. She felt like letting those people join in on hers and Percy's date was a horrible idea.

"Ooh! I love this part!" Travis says excitedly. "Tell me, Katie dear, what _does _it mean?"

"Well, Travis," she replied. "A forget-me-not simply means – Hurmph!"

Annabeth had slapped her hand over her mouth, face burning like lava. "T-That's none of your business! It doesn't matter what it means or not!"

Katie gently removed Annabeth's hand away from her mouth as everybody else, especially Percy, was interested in knowing what that particular flower meant.

"Well, Annabeth," Katie says casually. "I'm sure it _does _matter to you what it means."

Annabeth slapped her hand back onto Katie's mouth before she can say anymore. "I do not!" she protested, though her very red face gave it away.

"Mmm," Thalia mused. "Interesting, interesting…"

Annabeth glared at her.

"So what's the meaning, Kit Kat?" Travis asked eagerly.

"You. Will. Never. Know," Annabeth says in a strangely terrifying voice, hand still over Katie's mouth.

The boys nodded their heads vigorously in fear.

Thalia tutted at her, wagging an accusing finger at Annabeth, "We'll know one way or another." She was now glowering at Thalia.

"Er, maybe we should go back now?" Percy suggested, hoping they won't break into a fight. Percy didn't exactly care much about what a flower meant. As long as it's blue, it's fine to him.

"Right, we need to get back. Gods, we're going to be in so much trouble…" Nico muttered to himself.

"Trouble is my middle name," Travis grinned.

"That's what Conner told me," says Thalia, rolling her eyes.

"What? Conner's middle name is Big Headed Idiot," Travis replied.

"This feels like a disaster," Percy groaned. He caught Annabeth's eye for a moment, but she broke the connection away a few second later, blushing. He noticed and grinned.

"Okay, we're leaving!" Nico demanded, shoving the money at the waitress, Rachel.

"Gee, that's nice," Rachel scowled at him.

"Yeah, you're welcome. Now up and moving before Percy's mom will give permission for guards to spank us for being late!" Nico growled, back in anti-immaturity mode.

"What? Mom wouldn't do that," Percy protested. "The worst she could do is not baking any more blue cookies for me for a…Styx! We need to go!" he said, standing up suddenly.

"Are her cookies any good?" Thalia asked.

"I thought Queens let the chef do all the work," Katie says, removing Annabeth's hand.

"Not my mom. She likes to do everything," he replied. "Now let's get going before I lose my cookie privilege!"

"Weirdo," Thalia and Nico murmured under their breaths.

They raced each other to the castle, Annabeth and Percy teaming up by holding hands. Though, it wasn't exactly official if they were going out or not. When they reached the dining room, they found a bunch of empty plates and the demigods plus satyr slouching on their seats.

"I'm so full…" Grover moaned.

"More root beer…" Clarisse grunted.

"Gah-ha hah…" Pollux chucked, smelling strangely of alcohol. "I think I can still _par-tay_! If I could stand…"

Beckendorf was patting his belly and Silena was already fast asleep on Beckendorf's shoulder. Beckendorf had already made a two foot tall tower with a bunch of chicken bones.

"Oi! It's them!" Michael announced, pointing at the group of demigods who had just entered the area with a fork that still had a slice of cake stuck on it.

Sally was sitting patiently as if waiting for their arrival. "Where have you been?" she asked in a demanding voice.

Travis pushed Percy forward who was previously gazing at the last blue cookie sitting alone on a tray. He looked up to face his mother. "Um…triple date?"

* * *

**Yeah...no edit, short chapter, late update...I'm horrible aren't I? I'm so sorry! I've been sucked into Harry Potter for a while. It was good ._.  
But yeah, I'm sorry! Please review though (even if it's to tell me I'm one horrible writer)!  
Now I just need to find book seven... **


	25. Chapter 25: Dish Washing & Author's Note

Disclaimer: I do not own PJO.

**EXTREMELY IMPORTANT: **This story will be put on hiatus. I know, I know. I'm horrible. I even promised myself I would never do something like this, but yep. Here's the hiatus. I have reasons for this, so I'm going to list them to you, okay?

School's coming up. The horror! I didn't even buy all my school stuff yet.

I have IDEAS. Spectacular IDEAS. For fanfiction obviously. I will be posting them, so watch out! HA HA HAH! Yeah. One's called, "Pirates" and the other's called, "Superheroes". Because of that, I'd have to juggle around with three stories…ugh. So this is going to be on hiatus.

I'm writing more. Ideas keep appearing in my head. It's horrible! So I need to write them down before I forget it all.

The terror of writer's block. Gahh…

Don't worry everybody! I will finish this! One day…

This chapter's not my best. It's kind of…dull, so spare me, okay?

PS. The story of those new ones I'm posting will be updated by the number of reviews. If for example, "Pirates" has more reviews than "Superheroes," then I'll update "Pirates" instead. If it's tied, I'll update both. Get the idea? Good.

PPS. I can't believe it. I'm actually getting bored of writing this now… This is terrible! But yes, I will finish it. There will even be a sequel. (Oh gods, my fingers are coming off…)

And for those who don't read Author Notes at the top, I will copy and paste this **EXTREMELY IMPORTANT **part at the bottom. Though notifying this here would be pretty useless then… And for those who don't bother reading this, then too bad. I'm not explaining it to you in a PM. And if any of you shoot insults at me, all Hades will break loose… No, I'm kidding. I don't even know who you readers are. But seriously, don't complain to me. I'll ignore you. Unless your complaint is very amusing.

(Sorry for the short chapter. It was the a/n I wanted to post. But I wanted to give you all a chapter too. So here it is!)

PPPS. I just realized Poseidon has a daughter with Gaea before. It's Charybdis, from the Sea of Monsters. Funny, eh? Charybdis is a female D:

* * *

**Love Quest – Chapter Twenty-Five**

The six people who ran off to a burger restaurant were being punished by doing the dishes, much to the dishwasher's delight. He got to take the day off. Even though they were absolutely devastated for be given torture work for skipping the feast, they didn't regret it. It was the most fun they've had since their quest started.

Percy was probably the only one who didn't mind washing plates. Actually, the only reason for that was because he wanted to test his powers over the waters. He hardly got any practice on it.

They were in the kitchen, wearing yellow rubber gloves, in front of a large sink overflowing with dishes and utensils.

"Those pigs," Travis muttered. "Why'd they have to eat so much?"

"Ew," Katie said, completely revolted as she picked up a plate with brownish, orange, green muck stuck on it. "What _did _they eat?"

"That looks like vomit," Thalia says with disgust.

"More like Pollux's. Did he drink wine again?" Nico gagged.

"We'll have to wash it either way. The sooner we start, the sooner we'll finish," Annabeth says, turning a bit green.

Percy agreeing with her happily picked up a dish and scrubbed it with soap. Then, the feeling of something tugging his gut caused the water to burst out from the faucet and wash his plate clean.

"Hey, it's works," Percy says brightly, showing them the sparkling round disc.

They gapped at him; the thought never came to their mind that Percy could do that. Even Annabeth had almost forgotten. He didn't use his powers often.

"That is _so _unfair," Nico crossed his arms.

"You can all soap it, and I'll soak it," Percy grins, ignoring the slight headache he'd gotten from using his magical water abilities.

"He rhymes," Thalia grumbled as if Percy was some sort of lame pet goldfish doing tricks.

"But then _we _have to _touch _those things!" Travis protested, sticking out his tongue.

"At least your mom isn't showing baby pictures of me to Grover, Beckendorf, Michael, Pollux, Silena, _and Clarisse_," Percy pouted.

"She'll probably find the most embarrassing picture, photocopy them, and then post them all over town later. Let's cross our fingers," Thalia says.

"Give him a break, alright?" Annabeth defended. "Let's get just this over with. And Percy? You're still doing soap."

After an hour of exhaustion, complaining, yelling, and over a thousand demands to shut up from Annabeth, they finally finished up and were heading upstairs to Percy's room.

Percy looked like he was about to faint right then and there. Using his water powers took too much out of him. His face was pale and he had bags under his eyes as if he had pulled an all-nighter. Annabeth had to help support Percy up the stairs since everyone else protested.

When they reached his room, Annabeth helped Percy get to his bed before he collapsed and began snoring. Nobody expected him to feel so tired after cleaning all those dishes because he was the son of Poseidon and all.

Annabeth exhaled with relief, her shoulders aching from practically dragging Percy up here herself. She sat onto the bed next to Percy's sleeping form and felt like curling up and falling asleep next to him. She resisted since there were four other people in the room.

"Well," Thalia started, taking a seat on the floor next to the bed. "That was fun."

Annabeth glared.

Thalia held her hand up in surrender. "Hey, I'm pretty sure you enjoyed having Percy's arm around you."

Face turning pink, Annabeth glared harder to try and cover it up with anger.

"Oh, relax, will you?" Thalia yawned. "I'm going to check out some of Percy's baby pictures. See you."

"I'm coming too!" Travis's eyes lit up.

"Me three," Nico nodded his head.

"I guess I'll leave you and Percy alone," Katie waved at Annabeth before leaving the room with the others. Katie shut the door behind her, leaving Annabeth and Percy by themselves.

Annabeth blinked. They were finally gone? Well, thank the gods.

She looked over at Percy's sleeping figure and spotted drool on his chin. Rolling her eyes, she snatched a tissue from a nightstand and wiped it off for him. She stared at Percy for a short moment. As cliché as it sounds, Percy did look pretty innocent in his sleep. Annabeth placed her hand on Percy's cheek and he unconsciously scrunched up his eyebrows as if concentrating hard on something. She thought he looked cute. After muttering "Seaweed Brain," she finally lay down and snuggled close to him. Automatically, Percy's arm began to wrap around Annabeth's waist protectively.

The two of them slept in peace.

* * *

…Like I said. It's short. Sorry? LOL. Yeah, real short… Hades, this is like, the shortest chapter I've ever freaking written! Man, I feel horrible. Almost like a month since my last update, and I give you all an author's note and an incredibly tiny chapter... And most of the words are from the A/N. Agh... The next part of the author's note is copied and pasted from the top.

**EXTREMELY IMPORTANT: **This story will be put on hiatus. I know, I know. I'm horrible. I even promised myself I would never do something like this, but yep. Here's the hiatus. I have reasons for this, so I'm going to list them to you, okay?

School's coming up. The horror! I didn't even buy all my school stuff yet.

I have IDEAS. Spectacular IDEAS. For fanfiction obviously. I will be posting them, so watch out! HA HA HAH! Yeah. One's called, "Pirates" and the other's called, "Superheroes". Because of that, I'd have to juggle around with three stories…ugh. So this is going to be on hiatus.

I'm writing more. Ideas keep appearing in my head. It's horrible! So I need to write them down before I forget it all.

The terror of writer's block. Gahh…

Don't worry everybody! I will finish this! One day…

This chapter's not my best. It's kind of…dull, so spare me, okay?

PS. The story of those new ones I'm posting will be updated by the number of reviews. If for example, "Pirates" has more reviews than "Superheroes," then I'll update "Pirates" instead. If it's tied, I'll update both. Get the idea? Good.

PPS. I can't believe it. I'm actually getting bored of writing this now… This is terrible! But yes, I will finish it. There will even be a sequel. (Oh gods, my fingers are coming off…)

And for those who don't read Author Notes at the bottom, I will copy and paste this **EXTREMELY IMPORTANT **part at the top. Though notifying this here would be pretty useless then… And for those who don't bother reading this, then too bad. I'm not explaining it to you in a PM. And if any of you shoot insults at me, all Hades will break loose… No, I'm kidding. I don't even know who you readers are. But seriously, don't complain to me. I'll ignore you. Unless your complaint is very amusing.

(Sorry for the short chapter. It was the a/n I wanted to post. But I wanted to give you all a chapter too. So here it is!)

PPPS. I just realized Poseidon has a daughter with Gaea before. It's Charybdis, from the Sea of Monsters. Funny, eh? Charybdis is a female D:

**Anyways, REVIEW! If you'd like to whine about the hiatus or the tiny chapter, it'd better be worth my time. 'Cause this chapter was basically for the A/N... I know...I don't really deserve reviews, huh? But I'd be posting up the other fics real soon... (They're short too. LOL. I'm losing my touch! D: ) REVIEW!**


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